Economic research and trade policy analysis

El comercio puede mejorar drásticamente la vida de las mujeres mediante la creación de nuevos puestos de trabajo el aumento de las posibilidades de elección de los consumidores y el fortalecimiento del poder de negociación de las mujeres en la sociedad. También puede dar lugar a pérdidas de empleo y a una concentración del trabajo en ocupaciones de baja cualificación. Habida cuenta de la complejidad y especificidad de la relación entre comercio y género es esencial evaluar las repercusiones que pueden tener las políticas comerciales tanto en las mujeres como en los hombres y elaborar políticas adecuadas y basadas en datos empíricos para garantizar que el comercio contribuya a crear mejores oportunidades para todos. La investigación sobre la igualdad de género y el comercio se ha visto constreñida por la escasez de datos y por una comprensión deficiente de la relación entre los papeles económicos que desempeñan las mujeres como trabajadoras consumidoras y responsables de la adopción de decisiones. Basado en nuevos análisis y nuevos datos desglosados por sexo el estudio titulado Las mujeres y el comercio: el papel del comercio en la promoción de la igualdad de género tiene por objeto avanzar en el conocimiento de la relación entre comercio e igualdad de género y determinar una serie de oportunidades que puede ofrecer el comercio para mejorar la vida de las mujeres.

This Guide to Trade Policy Analysis provides the main tools for the analysis of trade policy. Written by experts with practical experience in the field this publication outlines the major concepts of trade policy analysis and contains practical guidance on how to apply them to concrete policy questions.

Global trade has contributed strongly to reducing poverty but important challenges remain in making trade work for the poorest. This publication presents eight case studies to reveal how trade can help to reduce poverty in developing countries. It focuses on four constraints faced by the extremely poor – namely that they tend to live in rural areas work in the informal sector live in fragile and conflict-affected regions and face gender inequality. The case studies identify ways to overcome these constraints including through the adoption of policies that maximize the contribution of trade to poverty reduction. The studies also highlight the ongoing gaps in data and research that constrain policy-making. The publication is a follow-up to The Role of Trade in Ending Poverty co-published by the WTO and the World Bank in 2015 which examined the challenges the poor face in benefiting from trade opportunities. The country-specific approach of this new publication complements the global perspective of the previous report.

In the digital age a growing number of governments have adopted policies aimed at boosting growth through innovation and technological upgrading. The World Trade Report 2020 looks at these trends and at how trade and the WTO fit with them. A defining feature of government policies adopted in recent years has been their support of the transition towards a digital economy. Trade and trade policies have historically been important engines for innovation. In particular the multilateral trading system has contributed significantly to the global diffusion of innovation and technology by fostering predictable global market conditions and by underpinning the development of global value chains. As data become an essential input in the digital economy firms rely more on intangible assets than on physical ones and digital firms are able to reach global markets faster without the amount of physical investment previously necessary in other sectors. Success in the digital economy will depend on openness access to information and communication technology (ICT) goods and services collaboration on research projects and the diffusion of knowledge and new technology. The World Trade Report 2020 shows that there is a significant role for international cooperation to make the pursuit of digital development and technological innovation more effective while minimizing negative spill-overs from national policies. The WTO agreements reached a quarter of a century ago have proved to be remarkably forwardlooking in providing a framework that has favoured the development of ICT-enabled economies across all levels of development. Further international cooperation at the WTO and elsewhere would enable continued innovation and reduce trade tensions to help international markets function more predictably.

Les “subventions” sont le sujet central du rapport 2006 sur le commerce mondial. Les auteurs explorent ce champ d'action pour voir comment on peut définir les subventions ce que la théorie économique peut nous dire d'elles pourquoi les gouvernements y ont recours quels sont les secteurs qui en sont les principaux bénéficiaires et quel rôle l'Accord de l'OMC peut jouer pour les réglementer dans le contexte du commerce international.

The 2017 World Trade Report examines how technology and trade affect employment and wages. It analyses the challenges for workers and firms in adjusting to changes in labour markets and how governments can facilitate such adjustment to ensure that trade and technology are inclusive.

Asia’s economic success over the past four decades has been built on a strategy of export promotion coupled with trade opening. Poverty rates throughout the region have fallen dramatically especially in countries that have succeeded in integrating into regional or global value chains. However this economic success has been accompanied by structural changes such as the need for workers to change roles sectors and sometimes regions. Faced with increased foreign competition firms have been forced to reorganize and quickly adopt new technologies. Despite the importance of this adjustment process relatively little empirical evidence exists. This volume aims to close this gap by providing new insights into how Asia’s labor markets and firms have adjusted to trade opening. Written by leading trade economists with expertise in the region the publication shows that trade opening has led to a more efficient allocation of capital and labor but this has been accompanied by significant adjustment costs. The book sheds light on the effects of trade on workers and firms with the aim of improving understanding of the adjustment process and contributing to the debate on how to make globalization work for all.

One of the most pressing issues confronting the multilateral trade system is the challenge posed by the rapid proliferation of preferential trade agreements. Plenty has been written about why governments might choose to negotiate preferentially or multilaterally but until now it has been written almost exclusively from the perspective of governments. We know very little about how non-state actors view this issue of ‘forum choice' nor how they position themselves to influence choices by governments about whether to emphasize PTAs or the WTO. This book addresses that issue squarely through case studies of trade policy-making and forum choice in eight developing countries: Chile Colombia Mexico South Africa Kenya Jordan Indonesia and Thailand. The case studies are based on original research by the authors including interviews with state and non-state actors involved in the trade policy-making process in the eight countries of this study.

Trois questions importantes seront déterminantes pour l'avenir de l'OMC: le règlement des différends les négociations et l'intégration régionale. Le règlement des différends est généralement considéré comme l'un des succès majeurs de l'OMC durant ses dix premières années d'existence. La conclusion des négociations du Cycle de Doha est l'un de ses principaux défis. L'intégration régionale est désormais au premier plan du débat alors que les accords régionaux prolifèrent et que les décideurs et les universitaires prennent la mesure de leur incidence sur le système commercial multilatéral. Ces questions et leur interaction sont traitées par d'éminents spécialistes et professionnels du droit commercial international originaires d'Amérique du Nord d'Europe et de la région Asie Pacifique. En outre des sections spécifiques sont consacrées à la région Asie Pacifique à sa participation au règlement des différends et aux négociations dans le cadre de l'OMC et aux tendances récentes à une plus grande intégration régionale.AE1:AE10

This study focuses on the relationship between trade and the growth of the informal economy in developing countries. Based on existing academic literature complemented with new empirical research by the ILO and the WTO the study discusses how trade reform affects different aspects of the informal economy. It also examines how high rates of informal employment diminish the scope for developing countries to translate trade openness into sustainable long-term growth.