Fair Trade There is only one international organization that deals with global trade and that is The World Trade Organization (WTO). The WTO deals with the rules countries use when trading between each other. "The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business" (WTO, 2011). The WTO helps with trade negotiations, implementation and monitoring, dispute settlement, building trade capacity, and outreach. The WTO is a great organization with the intent to organize fair trade between all countries. But what the WTO cannot do is make a country join. And many countries are not involved with the WTO and some need assistance and others are doing just fine on their own. Do more developed countries have an obligation to help lesser-developed countries by developing fair trade for all involved? What is the role of governments in helping develop and manage fair trade? This paper will explore some of the answers to these questions. Government Involvement Does government involvement help fair trade? Maybe trade should be the survival of the fittest. According to Bovard, "in practice, fair trade means protectionism. Yet every trade barrier undermines the productivity of capital and labor throughout the economy." By eliminating government involvement, those companies that are failing will cease to exist as more stable companies are able to take over trade for a specific market. Does this mean that the stronger countries will thrive and those that are less fortunate will fail? In some cases, yes, but in other cases no. Some countries with a product to import or export will survive just fine. But severely under-developed countries may suffer without a fair trade policy and some government invol... ... middle of paper ... ...enefit from the organization. There are many theories on how to handle international trade and how governments can aide in developing policies that work for all involved. These theories tend to change as economic times go up or down. Works Cited Bovard, J. (November 1, 1991). The Myth of Fair Trade. CATO Institute. Retrieved September 29, 2011 from http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-164.html Carbaugh, Robert (2009). International economics, (13th ed.). South-Western, Cengage Learning. ISBN 13: 9780324581485 Schuman, M. (September 17, 2010). Does America need an industrial policy? TIME. Retrieved September 29, 2011 from http://curiouscapitalist.blogs.time.com/2010/09/17/does-america-need-an-industrial-policy/ World Trade Organization (WTO). (2011). What is the WTO? Retrieved on September 29, 2011 from http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/whatis_e.htm
Trade is the most common form of transferring ownership of a product. The concepts are very simple, I give you something (a good or service) and you give me something (a good or service) in return, everyone is happy. However, trade is not limited to two individuals. There are trades that happen outside national borders and we refer to that as international trading. Before a country does international trading, they do research to understand the opportunity costs and marginal costs of their production versus another countries production. Doing this we can increase profit, decrease costs and improve overall trade efficiency. Currently, there are negotiations going on between 11 countries about making a trade agreement called the Trans-Pacific
The United States has for over two centuries been involved in the growing world economy. While the U.S. post revolutionary war sought to protect itself from outside influences has since the great depression and world war two looked to break trade restrictions. The United States role in the global economy has grown throughout the 20th century and as a result of several historical events has adopted positions of both benefactor and dependent. The United States trade policy has over time shifted from isolationist protectionism to a commitment to establishing world-wide free trade. Free trade enterprise has developed and grown through organizations such as the WTO and NAFTA. The U.S. in order to obtain its free trade desires has implemented a number of policies that can be examined for both their benefits and flaws. Several trade policies exist as options to the United States, among these fair trade and free trade policies dominate the world economic market. In order to achieve economic growth the United States has a duty to maintain a global trade policy that benefits both domestic workers and industry. While free trade gives opportunities to large industries and wealthy corporate investors the American worker suffers job instability and lower wages. However fair trade policies that protect America’s workers do not help foster wide economic growth. The United States must then engage in economic trade policies that both protect the United States founding principles and secure for tomorrow greater economic stability.
Slaves and slave trade has been an important part of history for a very long time. In the years of the British thirteen colonies in North America, slaves and slave trade was a very important part of its development. It even carried on to almost 200 years of the United States history. The slave trade of the thirteen colonies was an important part of the colonies as well as Europe and Africa. In order to supply the thirteen colonies efficiently through trade, Europe developed the method of triangular trade. It is referred to as triangular trade because it consists of trade with Africa, the thirteen colonies, and England. These three areas are commonly called the trades “three legs.”
Even in a world focused on the benefits free trade and aimed at achieving the goal of free trade, states are protectionist by nature. Unfortunately, the design of the international system allows for stronger nations to be more protectionist, leaving the weaker states even more vulnerable. A study that is more intensive than a critical commentary should be devoted to analyzing the impact of free trade on developing nations. I was limited to the readings and prior knowledge, and thus couldn’t provide a sufficient analysis on the fair treatment of developing nations. I was skeptical of the one reading that focused on fairness of international institutions because of the statistics that indicate these nations have not done well in recent decades. I would like to look into this more given more time and resources.
Roberts, Russell. (2006). The Choice: A Fable of Free Trade and Protectionism. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization deals with regulation of trade between participating countries; it provides a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements, and a dispute resolution process aimed at enforcing participant's adherence to WTO agreement, which are signed by representatives of member governments and ratified by their parliaments.
The Case Against Free Trade: GATT, NAFTA, and the Globalization of Corporate Power (An Earth Island Press Book). (1993). California: North Atlantic Books.
Canada is great economic superpower that has yet to reach its potential. As the second largest nation by area, we possess vast natural resources. We are a massive importer and exporter on the world stage, who a play a vital role in the stability of the northern hemisphere. Through Canada’s international trade, we export vast quantities of many different foods stuffs, minerals and manufactured goods like cars, while we tend to import lots of Iron, Aluminum and Steel. Our relations with neighbouring nations have been integral in the success of our trade. In 1994 Canada became a member of the North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA with the US and Mexico. NAFTA reorganized Canada’s and America’s trading systems to work as one. The trade issue of recent months is about the rising costs of energy in Canada and in the United States. Newly elected President George W. Bush now is proposing a North American energy initiative for a continental power grid. This proposal puts Canada in a very uncomfortable situation. On the one hand we would love to share our resources and appease our super-power to the south. But on the other we prefer to leave our pristine land alone. The growing trend nowadays is that politicians are the ones wanting to please the Americans by giving away our resources, while it is the activist who is concerned about the vast environmental damage this energy legislation could entail.
Mitchener, Kris, J. "Politics and trade: evidence from the age of imperialism." Voxeu.org. CEPR, 11 April 2008. Web. 30 November 2013.
In order for international trade to work well, governments must allow the world market to determine how goods are sold, manufactured and traded for all to economically prosper. While all nations may have the capability to produce any goods or services needed by their population, it is not possible for all nations to have a comparative advantage for producing a good due to natural resources of the country or other available resources needed to produce a good or service. The example of trading among states comprising the United States is an example of how free trade works best without the interve...
Another economist Douglas Irwin wrote a book titled “Against the Tide”. The book is an Intellectual History of Free Trade; it is an interesting, educational account of how free trade appeared and of how the concept of free trade has coped with two centuries of attacks and criticism.
Mohan, S., 2010. Fair Trade Without the Froth: A Dispassionate Economic Analysis of ‘Fair Trade’ [online]. London: Institute of Economic Affairs.
International business contains all business transactions private and governmental, sales, investments, logistics, and transportation that happen between two or more regions, nations and countries beyond their political limits. Generally, private companies undertake such transactions for profit governments undertake them for profit and for political reasons. It refers to all those business activities which involve cross border transactions of goods, services, resources between two or more nations. Transaction of economic resources includes capital, skills, and people. for international production of physical goods and services such as finance, banking, insurance, and construction.
Fletcher, I. (2011). Crumbling of Free Trade – And Why it’s a Good Thing. Retrieved from
International organizations create space for its members to coordinate interests and actions which helps promote interdependent relationships among them and strengthens their legitimacy. As society has progressed, it has globalized, and in the past 50 years states have had to address their growing dependence, especially in the economic sector. The World Trade Organization (WTO), is an institution which has an immense impact on the international political economy and the way states function within the international system. It organizes agreements and treaties which govern how its members decide policies, tariffs, and keeps states accountable for their actions. For example, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), determines how states can regulate their import and exports. (Hurd 2014,