Quantifying the Impact of Technical Barriers to Trade

This book provides an up-to-date discussion of economic issues involved in analyzing regulations of product quality and performance in international trade. Among the issues addressed in this collection are restrictions on genetically modified foods and pesticide use and compatibility standards for computers. While such regulations may serve important goals, they may also interfere with international trade flow by raising the costs of compliance. This is of special concern to developing countries, which have found it difficult to meet the increasingly exacting regulations imposed by the United States and Europe. Keith E. Maskus and John S. Wilson gather prominent international trade specialists to ask whether the impacts of such regulations may be quantified systematically in order to inform the international policy debate. The essays included here cover all fronts of the debate over regulatory issues and trade conflicts. The discussion ranges from a review of how trade conflicts emerge and how they are managed by the international trading system to a technical analysis of the potential impact of European restraints on trade in genetically modified products to an examination of methods for estimating the costs of compliance with environmental regulations. Considerable attention is paid to whether the emergence and enforcement of stronger standards among developed economies could result in diminished trade opportunities for developing countries. At the same time, the possibility that standards could expand market access through resolving consumer information problems is analyzed. This book will appeal to international economists, international relations specialists, andindividuals concerned about appropriate regulation of safety and health issues in the global economy. Keith E. Maskus is Professor of Economics, University of Colorado, Boulder. John S. Wilson is Lead Economist, Development Economics Research Group, The World Bank.

ISBN 0472112473   Pages 264 ISBN13 9780472112470 (What's this?)   Volumes 1 Publisher The University of Michigan Press   Weight (grammes) 560 Imprint The University of Michigan Press   Published in Ann Arbor, MI Format Hardback   Series title Studies in International Economics Publication date 30 Nov 2001   Height (mm) 230 Non-book description xvi, 244 p. :   Width (mm) 163 Library of Congress 2002280267   Spine width (mm) 28 DEWEY 382.7   Academic level Professional / Scholarly DEWEY edition DC21

		Preface
		Tables and Figures
		Abbreviations and Acronyms
1		A Review of Past Attempts and the New Policy Context by Keith E. Maskus and John S. Wilson		1
2		An Empirical Framework for Analyzing Technical Regulations and Trade by Keith E. Maskus and Tsunehiro Otsuki and John S. Wilson		29
3		Regulatory Protectionism, Developing Nations and a Two-Tier World Trade System by Richard E. Baldwin		59
4		Standards and Related Regulations in International Trade: A Modeling Approach by Mattias Ganslandt and James R. Markusen		95
5		Quantifying the Trade Impact of Compatibility Standards and Barriers: An Industrial Organization Perspective by Neil Gandal		137
6		GMOs, Trade Policy and Welfare in Rich and Poor Countries by Chantal Nielsen and Kym Anderson		155
7		Quantifying the Trade Impact of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards: What is Known and Issues of Importance for Sub-Saharan Africa by T. Ademola Oyejide and E. Olawale Ogunkola and Abiodun S. Bankole		185
8		Measuring Environmental Compliance Costs and Economic Consequences: A Perspective from the U.S. by Francis (Hank) G. Hilton and Arik Levinson		219
		Contributors		243

"This is like reading next year's Wall Street Journal. The authors summarize what's already known about technical barriers and preview research that will soon reveal much more."

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