My career in 6 bullet-points:• Advocate of #womeninartnet •Advisor at Large for the Asia-Pacific Research and Training Network on Trade (ARTNeT), an open network of research and academic institutions and think-tanks in the Asia-Pacific region.•Former Professor of International Economics at the University of Zagreb and a Senior Lecturer at the Economics Department of the University of Auckland.• Former Director, Trade, Investment and Innovation Division, United Nations ESCAP • Received the University of Oxford Fellowship (International Development Department), Salzburg Seminar Fellowship and the MITI, Japan Fellowship • Master in International Business from the St. Mary’s College of California and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Zagreb.
In a recent paper in this journal, Parai and Beladi (1997; henceforth PB) extend the wellknown Ha... more In a recent paper in this journal, Parai and Beladi (1997; henceforth PB) extend the wellknown Harris-Todaro model to consider imperfect labor mobility. They find unambiguous support for protection in the case of a small open economy with unemployment and ...
The underlying assumption employed in our analysis of the arguments for trade barriers in Chapter... more The underlying assumption employed in our analysis of the arguments for trade barriers in Chapter 10 was that the government, in setting the level of protection, was benevolent and that it acted to maximise the welfare of the nation via the representative consumer. Under such an assumption, among many trade barriers discussed, only a few can (as the first best or, more often, the second best policies) advance the national welfare compared with the free trade situation. These cases of nearly justified trade intervention may include the correction of a distortion (that is, closing a gap between marginal cost and marginal benefit), revenue collection or terms of trade correction. The latter is rightly seen as a ‘beggar-your-neighbour policy’, thus inviting retaliation from trading partners. In most cases, however, as our analysis clearly demonstrated, protectionist policies result in a net national welfare loss. Why then do, protectionist policies in practice exist? The most common explanation is that the national welfare loss due to protectionist policies is relatively small. Moreover the loss is dispersed across a large number of economic agents (consumers) preventing them effectively making a stand against such protectionist policies. A similar characterisation can be made of those producers who get hurt through the implementation of protectionist trade policies. On the other hand, we find some groups of economic agents (producers) rationally spending resources with the objective of influencing the suppliers of protection, government, in its decision regarding the level and the instruments of protection.
In each of the countries mentioned in the book, Aid for Trade projects were selected for further ... more In each of the countries mentioned in the book, Aid for Trade projects were selected for further analysis and evaluation in order to ascertain their impact, effectiveness, efficiency, relevance vis-a-vis trade objectives and sustainability. This analysis was conducted against a backdrop marked by growing concern for the optimal allocation of aid resources in a post-economic crisis world, where sources of official development assistance were becoming unstable and unpredictable or were decreasing.Keywords: trade, asia, pacific, optimal allocation, aid
... effects is not considered complete without also using a computable general equilibrium (CGE)m... more ... effects is not considered complete without also using a computable general equilibrium (CGE)model for quantitative ... He holds a Ph. ... He conducts research in the areas of international trade policy, agricultural economics and computable general equilibrium models, and teaches ...
The Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) is a recurrent publication prepared by the T... more The Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) is a recurrent publication prepared by the Trade and Investment Division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. It provides information on and independent analyses of trends and developments in: (a) intra- and inter-regional trade in goods and services; (b) foreign direct investment; (c) trade facilitation measures; (d) trade policy measures; and (e) preferential trade policies and agreements. The report offers insights into the impacts of these recent and emerging developments on countries’ abilities to meet the challenges of achieving inclusive and sustainable development. This 2014 edition of APTIR shows that, while the Asia-Pacific region remains the most dynamic pole of the global economy, growth in trade and investment has yet to return to pre-crisis levels. Regional trade growth weakened in 2013, and in the first half of 2014, and although growth in 2015 is expected to increase to 7%, ongoing uncertainties in global macroeconomic prospects mean this is far from assured. A key finding of the Report however, is that concentrations of exports and imports remain uneven across the region. East and North-East Asia alone accounted for about 60% of both total regional merchandise exports and imports in 2013. In a similar vein, 65% of all services exports from the Asia-Pacific region are attributable to just six economies. This implies that large gaps remain between countries in terms of their trade competitiveness and level of diversification, and that great potential remains still untapped, especially in the services sectors of many countries. The availability of competitive business and trade services, which support industrial exports, is also increasingly essential. Policymakers should take steps to lower barriers to trade. Progress in multilateral negotiations, including effective and speedy implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, would help. Regional trade liberalization agreements can also boost trade and integration, especially if many of the existing agreements can be consolidated. Completion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership as open-ended agreements, for example, could lead to the cancelling or consolidation of as many as 54 separate preferential trade agreements, and vastly simplify the Asia-Pacific “noodle-bowl” problem, while also addressing investment and other barriers to trade.
Focusing on the Least Developed Countries located in the Asia-Pacific region, the study explores ... more Focusing on the Least Developed Countries located in the Asia-Pacific region, the study explores the impact of different approaches available to the LDCs and their partners in improving their developmental prospects through enhanced trade. The monograph starts with the presentation of trade related data of the 14 LDCs and the linkage between trade and economic development. Then the issue of market access is analyzed, followed by a study of the increasing protectionist measures faced by LDCs during the crisis period. In addition, reciprocal trade liberalization policies (bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral) are explored from various perspectives in order to better understand their differences, interaction and impact on LDCs and more developed countries. The latter is estimated in an econometric exercise using a gravity model. Finally, possible options to improve the capacity of LDCs to tap their trade potential and integrate more effectively into the global economy are discussed, including Aid for Trade.
The trade models examined in previous chapters have provided us with an understanding of how diff... more The trade models examined in previous chapters have provided us with an understanding of how differences in national resources, technology or tastes lead countries to specialise in production and engage in mutually beneficial trade. On the basis of these models we can expect that: (1) Countries with the greatest differences in resources, technology or tastes (such as Japan and Ecuador) should trade more heavily than countries that are less dissimilar. (2) Trade should result in specialisation. Specifically, products being exported and imported by a country should belong to distinctly different product groups or industries (such as bananas and TV sets).
Managing climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been recognized as one of th... more Managing climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been recognized as one of the world's greatest challenges in current times, in particular in Asia and the Pacific which accounts for most of the world's GHG emissions. Without urgent action to curb such emissions, climate change will be more severe resulting in larger global temperature rises. Such temperature rises in turn are expected to result in extreme weather fluctuations and associated droughts and floods, melting of glaciers and rising sea levels affecting many countries, in particular coastal communities and rural areas. Trade and investment indirectly contribute to GHG emissions through the energy used in associated production and transportation processes to the extent that energy is generated on the basis of fossil fuels. However, if technologies can be developed and distributed which are clean and contribute to energy efficiency and conservation or use renewable energy, then trade and investment...
Despite its ‘twoness’ (that is, its 2 × 2 × 2 dimensions), the standard HOS model has been typica... more Despite its ‘twoness’ (that is, its 2 × 2 × 2 dimensions), the standard HOS model has been typically used in making fairly general statements about the open economy. However these general results are strongly dependent on the assumptions of the free and costless mobility of factors between sectors and their total lack of international mobility, assumptions that are clearly not plausible in the short run. Work on the consequences of a lack of internal factor mobility for the core propositions of the HOS model resumed about two decades ago. On the basis of contributions by Jones (1971), Samuelson (1971), Mayer (1974), Mussa (1974) and Neary (1978) the so-called specific-factors model emerged.1 This model is examined in the next section.
In section 1.1 of this chapter we consider the basic analytical relationships of the Ricardian mo... more In section 1.1 of this chapter we consider the basic analytical relationships of the Ricardian model. These provide the propositions for the law of comparative advantage which states that a country will export that good in which it has relative productivity advantage. This section also deals with the basic propositions concerning the gains from trade. Section 1.2 then considers some extensions of the basic model. It begins by identifying the duality between relative commodity prices and relative wages, looks at extensions through increasing the number of countries and goods, and finally looks at the introduction of transportation costs. Section 1.3 summarises the discussion.
Excerpt:" In developed countries, the crisis stems from a drying up of credit flows as finan... more Excerpt:" In developed countries, the crisis stems from a drying up of credit flows as financial institutions are no longer able to assess the creditworthiness of other enterprises, whether financial or non-financial. For instance, the inability of some companies to obtain ...
The present document is based on the forthcoming Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report 2013 (h... more The present document is based on the forthcoming Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report 2013 (henceforth the Report), which is the main substantive document prepared for the third session of the Committee on Trade and Investment. The Report comprises two parts. In the first part, there is a focus on trends and developments in trade in merchandise and commercial services, foreign direct investment flows, performance in trade facilitation, and reliance on preferential policies and trade agreements from an Asia-Pacific perspective. The second part of the Report contains an analysis of various issues related to enhancing the contribution of trade and investment to inclusive development and thus ensuring job creation, poverty reduction and economic engagement of marginalized groups, including women. The drafting of the Report was heavily influenced by the central tenets of the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, “The future we want”, namely the promotio...
In a recent paper in this journal, Parai and Beladi (1997; henceforth PB) extend the wellknown Ha... more In a recent paper in this journal, Parai and Beladi (1997; henceforth PB) extend the wellknown Harris-Todaro model to consider imperfect labor mobility. They find unambiguous support for protection in the case of a small open economy with unemployment and ...
The underlying assumption employed in our analysis of the arguments for trade barriers in Chapter... more The underlying assumption employed in our analysis of the arguments for trade barriers in Chapter 10 was that the government, in setting the level of protection, was benevolent and that it acted to maximise the welfare of the nation via the representative consumer. Under such an assumption, among many trade barriers discussed, only a few can (as the first best or, more often, the second best policies) advance the national welfare compared with the free trade situation. These cases of nearly justified trade intervention may include the correction of a distortion (that is, closing a gap between marginal cost and marginal benefit), revenue collection or terms of trade correction. The latter is rightly seen as a ‘beggar-your-neighbour policy’, thus inviting retaliation from trading partners. In most cases, however, as our analysis clearly demonstrated, protectionist policies result in a net national welfare loss. Why then do, protectionist policies in practice exist? The most common explanation is that the national welfare loss due to protectionist policies is relatively small. Moreover the loss is dispersed across a large number of economic agents (consumers) preventing them effectively making a stand against such protectionist policies. A similar characterisation can be made of those producers who get hurt through the implementation of protectionist trade policies. On the other hand, we find some groups of economic agents (producers) rationally spending resources with the objective of influencing the suppliers of protection, government, in its decision regarding the level and the instruments of protection.
In each of the countries mentioned in the book, Aid for Trade projects were selected for further ... more In each of the countries mentioned in the book, Aid for Trade projects were selected for further analysis and evaluation in order to ascertain their impact, effectiveness, efficiency, relevance vis-a-vis trade objectives and sustainability. This analysis was conducted against a backdrop marked by growing concern for the optimal allocation of aid resources in a post-economic crisis world, where sources of official development assistance were becoming unstable and unpredictable or were decreasing.Keywords: trade, asia, pacific, optimal allocation, aid
... effects is not considered complete without also using a computable general equilibrium (CGE)m... more ... effects is not considered complete without also using a computable general equilibrium (CGE)model for quantitative ... He holds a Ph. ... He conducts research in the areas of international trade policy, agricultural economics and computable general equilibrium models, and teaches ...
The Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) is a recurrent publication prepared by the T... more The Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) is a recurrent publication prepared by the Trade and Investment Division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. It provides information on and independent analyses of trends and developments in: (a) intra- and inter-regional trade in goods and services; (b) foreign direct investment; (c) trade facilitation measures; (d) trade policy measures; and (e) preferential trade policies and agreements. The report offers insights into the impacts of these recent and emerging developments on countries’ abilities to meet the challenges of achieving inclusive and sustainable development. This 2014 edition of APTIR shows that, while the Asia-Pacific region remains the most dynamic pole of the global economy, growth in trade and investment has yet to return to pre-crisis levels. Regional trade growth weakened in 2013, and in the first half of 2014, and although growth in 2015 is expected to increase to 7%, ongoing uncertainties in global macroeconomic prospects mean this is far from assured. A key finding of the Report however, is that concentrations of exports and imports remain uneven across the region. East and North-East Asia alone accounted for about 60% of both total regional merchandise exports and imports in 2013. In a similar vein, 65% of all services exports from the Asia-Pacific region are attributable to just six economies. This implies that large gaps remain between countries in terms of their trade competitiveness and level of diversification, and that great potential remains still untapped, especially in the services sectors of many countries. The availability of competitive business and trade services, which support industrial exports, is also increasingly essential. Policymakers should take steps to lower barriers to trade. Progress in multilateral negotiations, including effective and speedy implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, would help. Regional trade liberalization agreements can also boost trade and integration, especially if many of the existing agreements can be consolidated. Completion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership as open-ended agreements, for example, could lead to the cancelling or consolidation of as many as 54 separate preferential trade agreements, and vastly simplify the Asia-Pacific “noodle-bowl” problem, while also addressing investment and other barriers to trade.
Focusing on the Least Developed Countries located in the Asia-Pacific region, the study explores ... more Focusing on the Least Developed Countries located in the Asia-Pacific region, the study explores the impact of different approaches available to the LDCs and their partners in improving their developmental prospects through enhanced trade. The monograph starts with the presentation of trade related data of the 14 LDCs and the linkage between trade and economic development. Then the issue of market access is analyzed, followed by a study of the increasing protectionist measures faced by LDCs during the crisis period. In addition, reciprocal trade liberalization policies (bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral) are explored from various perspectives in order to better understand their differences, interaction and impact on LDCs and more developed countries. The latter is estimated in an econometric exercise using a gravity model. Finally, possible options to improve the capacity of LDCs to tap their trade potential and integrate more effectively into the global economy are discussed, including Aid for Trade.
The trade models examined in previous chapters have provided us with an understanding of how diff... more The trade models examined in previous chapters have provided us with an understanding of how differences in national resources, technology or tastes lead countries to specialise in production and engage in mutually beneficial trade. On the basis of these models we can expect that: (1) Countries with the greatest differences in resources, technology or tastes (such as Japan and Ecuador) should trade more heavily than countries that are less dissimilar. (2) Trade should result in specialisation. Specifically, products being exported and imported by a country should belong to distinctly different product groups or industries (such as bananas and TV sets).
Managing climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been recognized as one of th... more Managing climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been recognized as one of the world's greatest challenges in current times, in particular in Asia and the Pacific which accounts for most of the world's GHG emissions. Without urgent action to curb such emissions, climate change will be more severe resulting in larger global temperature rises. Such temperature rises in turn are expected to result in extreme weather fluctuations and associated droughts and floods, melting of glaciers and rising sea levels affecting many countries, in particular coastal communities and rural areas. Trade and investment indirectly contribute to GHG emissions through the energy used in associated production and transportation processes to the extent that energy is generated on the basis of fossil fuels. However, if technologies can be developed and distributed which are clean and contribute to energy efficiency and conservation or use renewable energy, then trade and investment...
Despite its ‘twoness’ (that is, its 2 × 2 × 2 dimensions), the standard HOS model has been typica... more Despite its ‘twoness’ (that is, its 2 × 2 × 2 dimensions), the standard HOS model has been typically used in making fairly general statements about the open economy. However these general results are strongly dependent on the assumptions of the free and costless mobility of factors between sectors and their total lack of international mobility, assumptions that are clearly not plausible in the short run. Work on the consequences of a lack of internal factor mobility for the core propositions of the HOS model resumed about two decades ago. On the basis of contributions by Jones (1971), Samuelson (1971), Mayer (1974), Mussa (1974) and Neary (1978) the so-called specific-factors model emerged.1 This model is examined in the next section.
In section 1.1 of this chapter we consider the basic analytical relationships of the Ricardian mo... more In section 1.1 of this chapter we consider the basic analytical relationships of the Ricardian model. These provide the propositions for the law of comparative advantage which states that a country will export that good in which it has relative productivity advantage. This section also deals with the basic propositions concerning the gains from trade. Section 1.2 then considers some extensions of the basic model. It begins by identifying the duality between relative commodity prices and relative wages, looks at extensions through increasing the number of countries and goods, and finally looks at the introduction of transportation costs. Section 1.3 summarises the discussion.
Excerpt:" In developed countries, the crisis stems from a drying up of credit flows as finan... more Excerpt:" In developed countries, the crisis stems from a drying up of credit flows as financial institutions are no longer able to assess the creditworthiness of other enterprises, whether financial or non-financial. For instance, the inability of some companies to obtain ...
The present document is based on the forthcoming Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report 2013 (h... more The present document is based on the forthcoming Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report 2013 (henceforth the Report), which is the main substantive document prepared for the third session of the Committee on Trade and Investment. The Report comprises two parts. In the first part, there is a focus on trends and developments in trade in merchandise and commercial services, foreign direct investment flows, performance in trade facilitation, and reliance on preferential policies and trade agreements from an Asia-Pacific perspective. The second part of the Report contains an analysis of various issues related to enhancing the contribution of trade and investment to inclusive development and thus ensuring job creation, poverty reduction and economic engagement of marginalized groups, including women. The drafting of the Report was heavily influenced by the central tenets of the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, “The future we want”, namely the promotio...
Revitalising Multilateralism Pragmatic Ideas for the New WTO Director-General, edited by Simon Evenett and Richard Baldwin, 2020
In this chapter, we are not asking what women can do for the WTO, but primarily what the WTO can ... more In this chapter, we are not asking what women can do for the WTO, but primarily what the WTO can do for women (admittedly these two processes might be co-dependent and definitely reinforcing each other). There is vast evidence that trade, and in particular opening to trade, has contributed immensely to the economic empowerment of women, and to their (and their children/ families) improved quality of living, education, health, etc., as summed up in the negative relationship between trade as a share of GDP and gender inequality (figure 1). However, there is also substantial evidence that much more needs to be done. The purpose of this chapter is to identify specific areas where the current WTO1.0 working program on women and trade can be upgraded in order to make it fit to deliver women’s economic empowerment by explicitly adopting gender in the WTO and its trade agreements
The early days of the #COVID19 pandemic demonstrated this resilience. Long-established, broadly a... more The early days of the #COVID19 pandemic demonstrated this resilience. Long-established, broadly accepted, and respected rule sets such as the various International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) rules governing trade finance proved to be well-functioning, with negligible levels of pandemic-induced abuse of process. Banks, insurers, and trading parties have continued to respect their obligations, honour their commitments and have generally “stayed in lane” as far as accepted industry practice.
Asia, we need to reimagine what international cooperation would look like, because we need it mor... more Asia, we need to reimagine what international cooperation would look like, because we need it more than ever when we build back stronger and smarter post-Covid-19.
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