Protectionism Case Study

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Protectionism regards the assistance that governments provide to domestic firms to compete with foreign firms. A tariff is a tax placed on imports by the government that is often a percentage of the price. For example, the Australian government places a 5% tariff on all imported cars, meaning that from the selling price of these cars, an additional 5% is added on (Sydney Morning Herald, 2014). This protects local firms as they can offer more competitive prices without the additional taxation. Unlike a tariff, a subsidy is a payment made to domestic firms in a particular market by the government, in order to reduce production costs. By supplying more money to domestic firms this gives them a chance to produce at a lower price meaning they …show more content…

Protecting domestic firms ensures that local jobs are not compromised by foreign trade, and therefore the unemployment rate can remain low. As local firms have an advantage due to protectionism, there is a higher chance that their businesses will thrive and expand resulting in a need for more labour. However, despite the implementation of protectionism it is unavoidable that foreign firms will absorb some of the market and force local firms to disperse or become more efficient with resources, resulting in a decrease in labour and increasing the unemployment …show more content…

The IMF mainly focusses on stabilising international monetary systems, through four main aims. These aim being; to promote global monetary cooperation (relations between countries monetary systems to provide each other support when in a poor economic situation), balanced growth of global trade, stability in exchange rates and forming a multilateral system of payments (monetary alliance between countries when facing economic issues). When striving to achieve these aims, there is an impact global trade and investment. To achieve these aims the IMF has formed a central bank that coordinates international payments and manages exchange rates, this then opens up avenues for global trade and investment for countries as stabilising exchange rates and countries’ economic status makes it easier for all countries to trade with each other, without one having a clear advantage over the other. For example, the IMF has helped South Sudan develop and stabilise its economy through monetary and technical assistance, resulting in a positive trade balance of $3.49bn, and trade relations with China and India (OEC, 2016). Unlike the IMF, the World Bank is operated through a group of MEDCs, with main aim of fighting poverty. To reach this aim the World Bank supplies

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