Adapting Regulations Post-Brexit

The UK government is taking advantage of the new regulatory flexibility, afforded by Brexit, to boost the country's competitiveness in pharma On 1 Jan. 2021, the United Kingdom formally left the European Union to become a third country and no longer a member of the Union's single market and customs union. The UK has, for example, decided to draw up its own version of the EU chemicals legislation-called REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals)-which sets technical standards for chemical ingredients for medicines (1). Because the UK is a separate legal entity-a third country-the UK's excipient producers and their raw material suppliers have started to be concerned about procedures like customs declarations and rules of origin. [...]by 18 Feb. 2021 the UK had vaccinated 26% of its population versus 8% in Denmark-the leading EU country for vaccines availability-6% in Germany, and 5% in France (6). NICE needs to change Industry believes that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the government's health technology assessment (HTA) body, is being too restrictive with its evaluation of digitalization products, which ultimately sets the price paid by the government for them (9).

Aid, Trade and Development: The Future of Globalization, Second Edition

This volume presents a broad sweep of modern economic history underpinning aid, trade, development and globalization in the last half century and the salient challenges facing the global community today. The author draws on his long years as an academic and development practitioner to recommend what needs to be done to cope with the backsliding of the fight against global poverty, fractured geopolitics and the threats to the multilateral economic order. The new, revised edition analyses how unilateralism, rising protectionism and the Covid-19 pandemic seriously threaten global sustainable development. It concludes with recommendations on the policy changes needed to make globalization more equitable and development more sustainable. This book will be of interest to researchers and students of economic development and economic history, as well as all those concerned about global inequality and sustainability. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

Impact of US-China trade war on Asian economies: neural network multilayer perceptron approach

PurposeThis study aims to find the impact of the trade war between the USA and China on Asian economies. Apart from macroeconomic variables associated with trade, this study explicitly creates a trade war scenario and trade war participant dummies. Using the neural network multilayer perceptron, this study checks for the causal linkages between the predictors and target output for the panel of Asian economies and the USA.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual model of the after effects of trade war in a quadrant is developed. Variables related to trade and tariffs are included in the study for a panel of 19 Asian economies. The feedforward structure of neural network analysis is used to identify strong and weak predictors of trade war.FindingsThe hidden layers of the multilayer perceptron reveal the inconsistency in linkages for the predictors' services exports, tariff measures, anti-dumping measures, trade war scenario dummy with gross domestic product. The findings suggest that to curtail the impact of the trade war on Asian economies, predictors with neural evidence must be paid due weightage in policy determination and trade agreements.Originality/valueThe study applies a novel and little explored AI/ML technique of Neural Network analysis with training of 70% observations. The paper will provide opportunity for other researchers to explore techniques of AI/ML in trade studies.

Nuances of Public Diplomacy: China in Chilean Op-Eds (2018-2021)

This paper explores editorials and opinion columns published in four Chilean mainstream newspapers and analyzes how China is represented within the context of Chinese economic advances in the region and the contextual narratives surrounding bilateral relations. Through a content analysis of editorials and opinion pieces of elite media between 2018 and 2021, this study allows an understanding of how China and its growing influence are perceived locally. Ultimately, despite an overall alignment with China's public diplomacy centered around an economiccommercial dimension, there are still nuances in how China is represented in Chilean op-eds.

Digital Transformation in Vietnam: Policies, Results and Recommendations

This paper attempts to elucidate Vietnam's strategies and policies for fostering digital transformation. Vietnam has made some progress in the digital transformation of its economy but there are challenges to achieving further progress. Business enterprises struggle to adopt digital technologies due to technical, financial and regulatory constraints. These constraints include conversion costs, internal infrastructure resources, data leakages and ineffective regulations. The government has provided support for the digital transformation of enterprises through improvements in its å framework for the digital economy, promotion of science and technology, taxation regime and SME assistance. The government should undertake further legal reforms to support digital transformation, strengthen digital human resources and enhance e-government capabilities.

Strategic Investment Policies for Digital Transformation: The Case of Indonesia

Consumption and production of digital goods and services have increased in Indonesia for the past ten years. A fast-growing e-commerce sector and an increase in digital payments supported the strong growth of the digital economy. Although Internet and digital transactions emerged in the late 1980s, the regulatory framework governing digital activities was only introduced in 2008 with the enactment of the Law on Electronic Information and Transactions. The government of Indonesia has relaxed foreign capital restrictions and provided fiscal incentives for digital businesses. Indonesia has also made commitments related to digital business in recent trade agreements in terms of the mutual recognition of consumer protection and cross-border data transfer. To encourage the use of ICT in public service, Indonesia introduced the 100 Smart City programme and has begun the implementation of electronic-based public service and operation (e-government). The government accelerated digital transformation during the COVID-19 pandemic by increasing the budget allocations for ICT in 2020 and 2021. To further accelerate digital transformation, the government needs to focus on digital literacy, nationwide integrated infrastructure, regulatory and institutional mechanisms and the innovation ecosystem.

Finding Feet on Trade Agreements: Empowering Women Entrepreneurs Amidst a Pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has deepened the existing gender inequalities. In particular, it has dealt a significant blow to women entrepreneurs, as it has magnified the pre-pandemic disadvantages women have faced in the economic, social, financial and regulatory ecosystems they operate in, particularly due to the nature and size of their businesses. The article outlines three main reasons that explain why women entrepreneurs have been disproportionately impacted during this health pandemic. It then explores how trade agreements can help women overcome the barriers that impede their entrepreneurial potential and help their businesses sustain the pandemic-inflicted market disruptions.

Agricultural Trade and Investments between Latin America and China: Development, Implications, and Challenges

Agriculture has progressively decreased in its proportion of the value of international trade flows, being largely surpassed by extractive industries and, above all, manufacturing. Latin America, and especially South America, however, is one of the regions where the highest percentage of total trade comes from agricultural trade. China has become a preferred destination for Latin American agricultural exports, with China seeing Latin America as a strategic partner in guaranteeing its food security. The objective of this chapter is to analyze the agricultural trade and investment relationship between China and Latin America, starting with an overview of the recent evolution of agricultural export and import flows between China and Latin America and its implications, followed by an analysis of the agricultural investment strategies that China has developed in Latin America and the agricultural trade agreements China has made with Latin American countries, and finishing with an exploration of the effects of COVID-19 on Sino-Latin American agricultural trade and some adaptation strategies that have been implemented. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Efectos económicos de la complementariedad comercial en la negociación de un tratado de libre comercio entre México y Corea del Sur *

México y Corea del Sur han avanzado en sus vínculos comerciales desde que iniciaron relaciones diplomáticas en 1962. Actualmente, los gobiernos de ambas economías se encuentran discutiendo la posibilidad de negociar un acuerdo de libre comercio. El objetivo de esta investigación es evaluar los efectos potenciales de dicho acuerdo. Para ello, se utilizan índices de intensidad comercial, ventajas comparativas reveladas, complementariedad y similitud comercial. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que los dos países han visto intensificar sus relaciones comerciales, lo que ha convertido a México en el principal socio comercial de Corea del Sur en América Latina, y ha dado lugar a una estructura comercial de complementariedad con ventajas para México en el comercio de combustibles minerales, lubricantes, maquinaria y equipo de transporte. También se obtuvo evidencia de la existencia de una asimetría en sus tarifas arancelarias que podría generar ventajas comerciales, sobre todo para México en el sector primario, en caso de lograr avanzar a la firma de un tratado de libre comercio.Alternate :Mexico and South Korea have progressed in their commercial affairs since they began diplomatic relations in 1962. Currently, the possibility of negotiating a free trade agreement between both economies is being raised. The objective of this research is to evaluate the potential effects of such a trade agreement for both countries. For this, indexes of commercial intensity, revealed comparative advantages, complementarity, and commercial similarity are used. The results show that these two countries have intensified their trade relations, turning Mexico into South Korea's main trading partner in Latin America and giving rise to a complementary trade structure with advantages for Mexico in the trade of mineral fuels, lubricants, machinery, and transport equipment. Also, an asymmetry was found in the tariff rates that could generate commercial advantages, especially for Mexico in the primary sector in case of the signing of a free trade agreement.

The heterogeneous effects of trade policy on trade resilience during the 2020 trade downturn

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in large and varying declines in bilateral trade flows. This study investigates whether these diverse effects can be explained by differences in trade costs as measured by pre-existing trade policies (e.g. tariffs, non-tariff measures and trade agreements). Results indicate that trade flows subject to higher trade costs declined more than average during 2020. The results also show that trade costs have heterogeneous effects depending on the thickness of trade relationships, with small exporters being relatively more affected by the presence of trade costs. We interpret the results as evidence that the fall in demand during 2020 caused higher-cost and less-established suppliers to be squeezed out of international markets. © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

U.S. SINGAPORE RELATIONS *

Though geographically only about three times the size of Washington, DC, and with a population of about 5.9 million, the city-state of Singapore exerts economic and diplomatic influence on par with much larger countries. Its stable government, strong economic performance, educated citizenry, and strategic position along key shipping lanes afford it a large role in regional and global affairs. For the United States, Singapore has been a partner in both trade and security initiatives and an advocate of a strong U.S. role in the Asia-Pacific region. At the same time, Singapore's leaders have aimed to maintain close relations with China, and to maintain positive ties with all regional powers.

North America's Shifting Supply Chains: USMCA, COVID-19, and the U.S.-China Trade War

"8 The most important of the factors discussed in the article is the U.S.-China Trade War (discussed in Part III of this article) which, despite the conclusion of the "Phase One" Agreement on January 15, 2020, permits the United States to continue to impose tariffs from 7.5 percent to 25 percent on some $360 billion worth of tariffs on Chinese imports.9 Many observers, including this writer, believe that these penalty tariffs, imposed originally to pressure China to improve its protection of intellectual 4. property,10 will be in force for the foreseeable future and will exacerbate the already significant pressures on U.S. businesses to restructure their supply chains away from China toward the United States and its two USMCA partners. Given the unpredictability of both the Trump Administration and the Chinese leadership, it is more than a remote possibility that the tariff levels on U.S. imports on the remaining approximately $150 billion worth of Chinese products could be increased without much warning, as this was threatened by the Administration in the Fall of 2019 when the "Phase One" Agreement was under negotiation.11 Thus, in many respects, North America is expected to become the most attractive option for sourcing many parts and components and for supply chain management more broadly, even if the logistics and other complexities of more extensive decoupling from Chinese sources requires an extended period (three to five years) for many manufacturers of complex products. The dislocations will not be limited to U.S. importers because American firms, like chip producers Qualcomm and Intel, as well as Boeing (who count China as one of their most significant markets),13 are likely to lose partial access to that market either because of export controls or as retaliation for U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports to the United States. Initial concerns arose some years ago, well before the coronavirus became a worldwide catastrophe and before the United States and other governments placed blame on China for concealing the seriousness of the outbreak in China in a manner that has made it difficult for other countries, including the United States, to react promptly and effectively to the threats to the health of their own citizens and their economies.14 The pandemic has further reinforced the determination of President Trump and his key advisers (and many on both sides of the aisle in Congress) to greatly reduce or eliminate the supply chain links between U.S. manufacturers and China.15 This monumental change would be accomplished through "reshoring" production either to the United States proper (as the Administration would seemingly prefer) or, more likely in the case of labor-intensive products, "nearshoring" production to Mexico.16 For some products, final assembly and production of parts and components would be split between the United States and Mexico or Canada.

Unpacking the Black Box of China's State Capitalism

Much ink has been splashed on the ideological, conceptual, and practical challenges that China's state capitalism has posed to global trade rules. There is a growing perception that the current international trade rules are neither conceptually coherent nor practically effective in tackling China's state capitalism. This perception has not only led to the emergence of new trade rules in regional trade agreements, but also culminated in the US-China trade war, only further aggravated by the Covid-19 pandemic. This Article contributes to the debate of what trade rules may be needed to counteract China's state capitalism by unpacking the black box of China's state capitalism. Based on an analysis of the nature of China's state capitalism, this Article provides a preliminary evaluation of current trade rules taken to counteract China's state capitalism, in particular the new rules in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and explain why they are unlikely to be successful.

The EU Trade Agenda—Rules on State Intervention in the Market

This Article critically analyzes the main legal and policy issues that are likely to determine the development of the EU's trade policy concerning rules on State intervention in the market, specifically on subsidies and SOEs. The article assesses the aforementioned issue especially within the context of the new trade strategy entitled "An Open, Sustainable and Assertive Trade Policy” set out by the European Commission in February 2021, at the core of which stands the concept of strategic autonomy. The focus of our analysis is on key elements of the current EU competition and trade policies and normative initiatives, namely: the relaxation of the usual State aid regime under Articles 107 and 108 TFEU to give Member States more flexibility in supporting their economies and strengthen EU industrial policy;the likelihood of EU proposals resulting in any substantial change to international trade law on subsidies and SOEs at the multilateral (WTO) level;a systemic horizontal investigation into the relevant trade rules promoted by the EU in its most recent practice of PTAs;and, finally, the EU pursuing stronger protection of its companies with its recently announced new regulation on foreign subsidies, on the basis of which the European Commission can investigate foreign subsidies and impose remedies. Even though, at first sight, it may seem that the current evolution of the EU trade policy on these issues seems inconsistent, the Article argues that the unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral approaches are indeed strictly intertwined, and they reveal a significant shift in the most recent EU trade policy objective in relation to the role of State in the market.

The Covid 19 Exogenous Shock and the Crafting of New Multilateral Trade Rules on Subsidies and State Enterprises in the Post-Pandemic World

This Article discusses existing WTO rules on subsidies and state enterprises, relevant caselaw and reform prospects in light of key geopolitical developments and changes in the global economy emerging in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. Following a general introduction, the Article critically analyzes present WTO rules on industrial subsidies, focusing inter alia on the new problems raised by activist industrial policies pursued by global trading powers, foreign subsidization, the climate change shock and environmental exigencies. It then shifts attention to the application of WTO rules on subsidies to the state sector and the increasing demands for new international trade rules on non-subsidies measures to address the negative spillover effects on trade from government influence on state-owned enterprises (SOEs). With respect to each of these matters, the Article first clarifies the terms of the problem in relation to existing WTO rules and caselaw, and next examines the question of how, and to what extent, "deeper” free trade agreements (FTAs)—those that experts designate as models for WTO reforms on the matter—establish new rules that permit to adequately address the trade concerns raised by SOEs' commercial and financial activities. Based on this multi-layered analysis, the article concludes by examining prospects of reform of WTO rules on state interventionism.

China-Australia Relations and China's Policy Choices toward Australia: A Chinese Perspective

Since 2016, Australia's attitude toward China has taken a turn for the worse, and Sino-Australian relations have seen a significant decline. With regard to the change in Australia's attitude toward China, Chinese scholars initially analyzed it mainly from the perspective of the U.S.Australia alliance and the China-U.S.-Australia triangle, viewing U.S. influence as the key reason for the change in Australia's policy toward China. Later, Chinese scholars have become increasingly aware of the significant policy autonomy in Australia's China policy and the inadequacy of viewing Australia's China policy from the U.S. perspective. On the one hand, Australia's unique threat perception and interest perception have shaped the characteristics of its China policy;on the other hand, how to effectively balance security interests and economic interests is a long-standing dilemma faced by Australia under the strategic competition between China and the U.S. The Australian government has shown a degree of policy flexibility in its approach. The limited coercive economic measures taken by China against Australia have sent clear policy signals to Australia and have become a factor influencing its policy towards China. In the coming period, although no obvious opportunity for improvement in China-Australia relations is in sight, both sides may be more prudent and pragmatic strategically, and China-Australia relations can be expected to remain basically stable at a low level.

Special Economic Zones in an Era of Multilateralism Decadence and Struggles for Post-Pandemic Economic Recovery: Perspectives from the Global South

Recent years have seen a proliferation of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in developed and developing countries. Developed in Europe in its modern shape, most SEZs are located outside the continent today, notably in the developing world, where SEZs form part of these countries' export-oriented growth policy tools and overall economic development. At a period of growing unilateralism and the return of the State as an economic actor, this contribution seeks to tackle the rise of SEZ laws in the global south, with a particular focus on Africa. It will scrutinize the reasons for their establishment, the measures chosen to promote them, and the international ramifications in these respective regions and broadly on the global plane, notably at the WTO. With the entry into force of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement, African countries face challenges of multi-layered SEZ governance, which this contribution intends to address. These challenges also extend to the cross-regional trade agreements these countries conclude, individually and as a bloc. Since SEZs are often assimilated with a category of subsidies and are discriminatory trade measures, this contribution, in essence, investigates the extent to which current trade rules at multilateral and regional levels address these controversial aspects of SEZs.

International practice analysis of the negative list: Chinese Example of shipping market access

The international shipping industry is unique and important. The negative list related to the opening up of the shipping industry is an important part of the reform and innovation of China's pilot free trade zones. In recent years, as countries around the world continue to promote the process of opening up in the fields of trade and services, the negative list system has been used more in international investment and trade agreements. In the field of International Shipping, how to correctly grasp and apply the negative list system is an important topic. Starting with the general concept of the negative list system of shipping market access, this paper reviews and summarizes the developmental processes of the negative list of foreign capital market access in the shipping field since the establishment of Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone. It compares and analyzes the international contracting practice of the European Union and the United States as reflected in the negative list of shipping market access. It equally points out that the system connection between the negative list still existing in China's shipping field and the international high standard negative list is not enough. It argues that the transparency of the negative list still needs to be further strengthened as the rules behind the list and the awareness of its risk prevention are weak. In view of these hitches, this paper makes some suggestions that are tilted towards improving the negative list system of China's shipping market access. It also continues the optimization of the negative list of shipping market access, and the improvement of a conscious awareness aimed at avoiding the possible risks of the negative list. Finally, it makes a strong argument for a continuous improvement of China's international shipping competitiveness.

BREXIT AND OUTLOOK FOR A U.S.-UK FREE TRADE AGREEMENT *

Brexit introduced new exporting and importing licensing requirements, border checks, and regulatory compliance requirements, raising costs and the potential for bottlenecks at borders. For financial services, which account for 7% of UK GDP and one million jobs, the deal does not address UK financial services firms' access to the EU, which previously was through a "passporting" right that allowed banks to use their UK bases to access EU markets without establishing legally separate subsidiaries;the parties aim to establish a framework for cooperation by March 2021. U.S. and other exporters will need to manage separate customs regimes and relationships for the UK and EU. Since the transition period, the UK has engaged in negotiations to replicate existing EU trade deals with non-EU countries (e.g., Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, South Korea, and Turkey), and pursued new deals with countries with which the EU has not concluded trade deals (e.g., Australia, India, and the United States). [...]UK farmers and some in civil society voice concerns about the implications of U.S. demands for greater access to the UK market, and potential changes to UK food safety regulations.

The evolution of the global structure of food and agricultural trade: evidence from network analysis: background paper for the state of agricultural commodity markets (SOCO) 2022

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which began in February 2022, have tested the resilience of the food and agricultural trade network at a global level. The global dimension of these crises meets a policy landscape in which multilateral trade negotiations have largely stalled and regional approaches to trade integration are proliferating rapidly. Based on network analysis, this paper explores the evolution of the integration of the network of food and agricultural trade since the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) in 1995, the network structure and their implications for resilience to trade shocks. Food and agricultural trade evolved rapidly and countries worldwide became more connected to global markets in the period 1995-2007, but progress has since been limited. While countries are connected globally, trade intensity is usually higher in specific regional clusters, which have become firmer over time. Increased connectivity among countries boosted their resilience to trade shocks, but vulnerabilities remain and evidence suggests slight tendencies of disintegration in recent years.