Major Trading Research Articles

An Appraisal of Carbon Taxes for Alignment to Socio-Economic Realities of Africa

Weather fluctuations are negatively impacting global growth; hence, continued calls for global carbon mitigation are being made. Research, especially in the European Union (EU), reveals that carbon pricing and emission trading systems are innovative and flexible enough to address market failures caused by externalities linked to carbon emissions. However, these countries lack proxies in Africa, and there is a research gap on how such taxes could be designed to align with Africa’s socio-economic realities. Through a literature review of open-source, but recent, studies on the subject, this paper seeks to fill this research gap, while creating a foundation for next-generation research in this area. The paper argues that, despite Africa’s low carbon footprint, economic realities and prospects, the implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by the EU (one of Africa’s major trading partners) has rendered such taxes inevitable in Africa; hence, implementable policy alternatives aligned with the region’s socio-economic realities are needed.

Особенности реализации торговой политики китая

Within the framework of this work, the key points in the implementation of China’s trade policy are revealed. The Beijing authorities are aiming at multi-vector work with various actors who are ready to cooperate, wanting to improve their situation, while facing certain difficulties caused by both natural and artificial causes. It is quite natural that a number of already existing major trading players are trying to prevent China from further developing in the environment under consideration. Now, within the framework of foreign policy tensions, China is confidently showing itself as an economically strong power. The article highlights the peculiarities of the Chinese approach to interaction with its partners in the framework of political cooperation. It is planned to consider the goals of the government, as well as multifaceted cooperation with other global political actors that influence global markets in one way or another.

EU 탄소국경조정제도의 경제적 파급영향 분석

The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of the EU CBAM on international trade and suggest policy of reaction for Korea. The results of the analysis are as follows. First, we find that when the EU unilaterally imposes a carbon tariff, and its trading partners accept it, the EU's export competitiveness increase, but the exports of trading partners such as India and Russia decrease significantly. Second, when trading partners react to the EU's actions by imposing retaliatory tariffs, the EU's exports decline, and the losses of its major trading partners are reduced. Furthermore, intra-regional trade between EU countries increases with the introduction of CBAM, while trade with non-EU countries decreases significantly. Finally, the analysis shows a significant decrease in steel and aluminum trade among the world trade goods. In conclusion, if the EU does not take the initiative to talk with its trading partners to ensure they understand and accept the introduction of CBAMs, they are likely to take retaliatory measures, resulting in a slowdown in global trade. Therefore, Korea should monitor closely the progress of discussion related to this issue and prepare policy to minimize the impact on trade from such action.

TBT 규범의 조화가 무역에 미치는 영향

The rapid increase in non-tariff barriers due to the spread of global protectionism is observed in many countries, including South Korea and its major trading partner, ASEAN. In this context, as the importance of standard harmonization is increasingly emphasized, this study analyzed the impact of the differences in TBT standards between South Korea and ASEAN on trade. The analysis revealed that the TBT standards between South Korea and ASEAN are gradually diverging. In particular, for semiconductors, which is one of the major export items of South Korea, it was found that the regulatory distance, an index quantifying the heterogeneity of standards, has significantly increased. During the same period, the measure B2 showed the largest increase in regulatory distance, while the measure B6 showed a relatively lower regulatory distance. However, the relationship between regulatory distance and trade volume varied by country, measure, and item, and generally, as the regulatory distance decreased, the tendency to promote trade was observed. These results provide important implications for the expansion of trade with ASEAN, and it is expected that establishing differentiated strategies according to the regulatory distance will have a positive impact on the expansion of trade between South Korea and ASEAN.

중력모형을 활용한 우리나라 주요산업의 수출결정요인 비교 분석

Purpose - This study aims to derive export determinants for each major industry in Korea using a gravity model, and through this, suggest factors affecting the competitiveness of each industry.
 Design/Methodology/Approach - Using a gravity model, this study used annual data from 1995 to 2022 and conducted a panel analysis on the top 10 major export destination countries of Korea. The industries to be analyzed were agricultural and fishery products, chemical industrial products, iron and metal products, machinery, and electronic products.
 Findings - As a result of analyzing Korea’s major export determinants by industry using a gravity model, it was found that the per capita GDP (PGDP), which can determine the income size of the other country, gross national income (GNI) of the other country, and the population of the trading partner (POP), which can determine the size of the economy, had a positive (+) effect on chemical industrial products and machinery, and the distance variable showed negative effects on all industries except machinery.
 Research Implications - The larger the income and economy of Korea’s major trading partners, the greater the impact on exports. However, it was analyzed that the conclusion of an FTA had a positive (+) effect on agricultural, forestry, and fisheries products and steel and metal products, and the economic growth rate of trading partners had a positive effect on machinery and electronic products. The analysis results suggest that there are differences in export determinants by major industry, which requires an approach of customized export strategies by industry.

Community-based Empowerment: Unveiling patron-client Patterns in Voluntary Trader Partnerships for Enhanced Production in Desa Kolot, Cikalong Tasikmalaya

Enhancing production activities in Desa Kolot, Cikalong Tasikmalaya is achieved through mutually beneficial partnerships among traders, exemplifying a community-driven empowerment model. This approach is introduced as a response to counter the negative perceptions associated with interventionist empowerment strategies implemented by head of village. The objective of this research is to uncover the interconnected pattern involving traders with ample capital collaborating with those lacking financial resources. Employing a qualitative methodology with a phenomenological approach, the data analysis utilizes the patron-client theory. The study identifies the effectiveness of an empowerment model that optimizes the local potential of traditional snack production, deeply rooted in the community’s traditions. The empowerment mechanism is executed through voluntary connections established between major traders providing capital and smaller traders contributing culinary products. Small traders, as beneficiaries, get provision of materials, production tools, and skill enhancements offered by larger traders. Similarly, major traders benefit by gaining access to a market for the product of culinary, thereby expanding their customer base. These personal, voluntary, and tradition-bound relationships reflect dyadic connections characterized by an imbalance, potentially leading to domination and exploitation.

Spatial heterogeneity among different-sized port communities in directed-weighted global liner shipping network

Global liner shipping network (GLSN) serves as the backbone of international commerce. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and regional integration, regionalization has become one of the dominant trends of the GLSN's structure. This study detected 27 practical relevant port communities within the directed-weighted GLSN using the Infomap algorithm. Based on the community structure of the GLSN, we identified the provincial, gateway, and connector hubs, considering the balance and intensity of the inbound and outbound shipping routes. To highlight the smaller communities obtained in this study, those practical relevant port communities are further differentiated into 7 large and 20 small port communities. The spatial heterogeneity among different-sized port communities is investigated regarding geographical distribution, topological properties, functional characteristics, etc. The large port community is typically formed in major trading regions with well-developed hub-and-spoke networks. They are the principal market in which most liner operators participate in it. Some small port communities lying along the main lane of seaborne container trades also play pivotal roles in the GLSN with many liner companies involved. While other small port communities located peripherally only connect to a few surrounding port communities. The spatial heterogeneity among different-sized port communities is mainly caused by the unbalanced distribution of seaborne container trades. These findings offer new insights into the community structure and its spatial heterogeneity within the GLSN, which can provide stakeholders with practical implications.

How Does Anhui Province Develop a Carbon Finance Development Path under the Background of "Dual Carbon"

The solemn commitment made by our country's leaders in the international community to the " 3060 Goals" has brought new opportunities to the development of carbon finance and also posed challenges to the development policy of carbon finance. In recent years, the international carbon finance market has expanded rapidly, and concepts such as low-carbon economy have gradually received attention from various countries. Cooperation and exchanges on carbon finance among countries have also gradually increased. As the background for the construction and development of Anhui's carbon finance system, this article first summarizes the current status of global carbon finance, introduces the operation of several major foreign carbon finance trading markets, and analyzes the development trends of global carbon finance. It pointed out the difficulties and challenges encountered in the construction and development of the carbon financial system in Anhui Province, including the problems that must be solved during the construction and development of the carbon financial system, and put forward suggestions for solving these problems.

Study on the Development Prospects of China-Japan Trade in the Context of Global Value Chains

Abstract This paper proposes a value-added trade measurement model after a specific analysis of the extent of China and Japan’s participation in GVCs, the mode of participation and the status of division of labor, and the characteristics of the participation structure. Combined with the ratio of value-added to total exports, China is compared with major trading countries to study China’s level of value-added in GVCs, trade characteristics, and the proportion of China’s industry-wide development. Combined with the WIOD data, based on the model proposed in this paper, the bilateral trade interests of China and Japan, the bilateral export value, and the trade interest rate of both sides are measured from 2000 to 2014. The classification method of HS commodity code is used to extract the trade data of important time nodes between China and Japan and analyze the development of the structure of commodity trade between China and Japan. It measured that in 2014, the trade interest rate of China to Japan was 81.95%, and the export of 172.911 billion dollars contained 141.707 billion dollars of trade interest. Japan’s trade benefit rate to China was 73.94%, with $95.615 billion of trade benefits included in $129.314 billion of exports. It shows that as of 2014, China has replaced Japan in the bilateral trade between China and Japan to occupy a relatively favorable position, indicating that the international division of labor between China and Japan has gradually shifted from a vertical division of labor to a horizontal division of labor.

Estimating the Impact of COVID-19 on International Trade: Cases of Major Countries Using the SUR Model

This study examined the intricate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on international trade complexity. Focusing on major international trading entities such as Hong Kong, Korea, China, Japan, and the U.S., we evaluated how confirmed COVID-19 cases and government responses influenced trade patterns, particularly in exports and imports. We employed a seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) analysis with cyclic regression coefficients to scrutinize changes in trade relationships between 2020 and 2021. Korea serves as the central country for this analysis, and the findings extend to other nations. The results revealed the varied impact of COVID-19 on trade across countries. Exports from Korea to China were correlated with COVID-19 case numbers and government actions in both countries. Additionally, imports from China, Japan, the U.S. and Vietnam—excluding Hong Kong—were significantly influenced by confirmed COVID-19 cases in Korea, reflecting the demand dynamics. Government interventions also played a substantial role in shaping trade patterns. Previous studies have primarily focused on financial markets and supply chains, whereas our study analyzed the changes in trade with Korea’s five largest trading partners: China, the U.S., Japan, Vietnam, and Hong Kong. Notably, we utilized long-term data and changes in major trading partners in Asia over time.

EU-Russia energy decoupling in combination with the updated NDCs impacts on global fossil energy trade and carbon emissions

The updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and EU-Russia energy decoupling have profound impacts on global fossil energy trade and carbon emissions. This study utilizes a dynamic general equilibrium model (GDyn-E) and conducts scenario analysis to illustrate the evolving patterns of global fossil energy trade and carbon emissions in light of the updated NDCs and EU-Russia energy decoupling. A sharp decrease in global fossil fuel consumption will reduce the global volume of fossil energy trade. Major fossil energy trade flows will divert from Europe to Asia, particularly China and India. EU-Russia energy decoupling directly triggers adjustments in the global fossil energy trade such that the EU imports more fossil energy from the Middle East, Norway, and the United States, while Russian fossil energy exports are steered toward Asia. This shift in energy trade patterns is expected to lead to a reduction of approximately 2 Gt CO2 in cumulative carbon emissions worldwide by 2050, which is primarily driven by the intensified efforts of European countries in transitioning to renewable energy sources. The findings of this study offer valuable insights into the interplay between geopolitical conflicts, fossil energy trade dynamics, the updated NDCs, and carbon emission reduction.

Chinese Economic Statecraft in Southeast Asia and Its Uneven Impact in Laos and Cambodia

This paper examines how China has successfully translated its economic might into political clout in Laos and Cambodia. The country’s role as a major trading partner, foreign investor, and provider of aid to both countries has contributed substantially to their national development. This massive influx of Chinese investment and aid has also yielded positive results, as both countries have demonstrated a more accommodating attitude toward Beijing on a variety of issues. However, Chinese economic statecraft has had differing degrees of influence on the foreign policymaking of Laos and Cambodia, particularly with regard to their foreign policies toward Vietnam, a critical secondary state in Southeast Asia. While Cambodia has been less hesitant to bandwagon with China, Laos is still seeking to balance between China and Vietnam. This paper argues that Laos and Cambodia’s existing perceptions of Vietnam dictate in part how they respond to China’s economic inducements and affect the outcomes of Chinese economic statecraft.

Regulating SOEs Through the SCM Agreement: Utilizing the ‘Public Body’ Jurisprudence to Cover SOEs

In January 2020, trade ministers from the EU, the US, and Japan proposed several amendments to the WTO Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM) Agreement. One of the proposals was to examine whether to incorporate state-owned enterprises (SOEs) into the definition of the public body in the SCM Agreement. A similar approach was adopted in the EU’s white paper of June 2020. These proposals present that the current WTO jurisprudence is not adequate to regulate financial contributions by SOEs. On the other hand, recent international trade agreements suggest another type of SOE regulation by providing a set of independent norms on SOEs. As such, there are two options for regulating subsidization by SOEs in the current international trade regime: a combined scheme and a separate scheme. This article argues that a combined scheme that regulates SOEs through public body concept in the WTO SCM Agreement is a more adequate formula than a separate one. Considering aggravating trade disputes among major trading partners surrounding the SOEs a better method to regulate SOEs in a single and coherent WTO SCM Agreement is suggested. state-owned enterprises, SCM Agreement, subsidization, public body, governmental authority, combined scheme, separate scheme

What Major Agricultural Cross-Border Trade Products in India Are Influenced by Payments?

This study explores the connection between overall Indian payment statistical indicators and the import-export patterns of around 40 major agricultural products regulated by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) in India. Using separate regression analyses for import and export transactions from 2013 to 2022, our findings indicate that only a few of these products show a clear impact from payment indicators. In a time when digital payments are becoming increasingly important, the discovery that certain agricultural products are not affected by payment trends has significant implications for the financial landscape. As digital transactions continue to grow, understanding that some agricultural products remain independent of payment trends highlights the need for comprehensive intervention and further research. This study emphasizes the importance of thoroughly investigating these dynamics, providing insights to inform strategic decisions and policies that align with the changing financial ecosystem.

A biological product of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens QST713 strain for promoting banana plant growth and modifying rhizosphere soil microbial diversity and community composition.

Bananas are not only an important food crop for developing countries but also a major trading fruit for tropical and semitropical regions, maintaining a huge trade volume. Fusarium wilt of banana (FWB) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense is becoming a serious challenge to the banana industry globally. Biological control has the potential to offer both effective and sustainable measures for this soil-borne disease. In order to explore the biocontrol effects of the biological agent Bacillus amyloliquefaciens QST713 strain on banana plants, two cultivars, Brazilian and Yunjiao No. 1, with varied resistance to FWB, were used in greenhouse pot experiments. Results showed that the plant height and pseudostem diameter of banana-susceptible cultivar Brazilian increased by 11.68% and 11.94%, respectively, after QST713 application, while the plant height and pseudostem diameter of resistant cultivar Yunjiao No. 1 increased by 14.87% and 12.51%, respectively. The fresh weight of the two cultivars increased by 20.66% and 36.68%, respectively, indicating that this biological agent has potential effects on plant growth. Analysis of the rhizosphere soil microbial communities of two different cultivars of banana plants showed that TR4 infection and B. amyloliquefaciens QST713 strain application significantly affected the bacterial and fungal diversity of Yunjiao No. 1, but not in the cultivar Brazilian. In addition, TR4 infection and QST713 application changed the bacterial community composition of both banana cultivars, and the fungal community composition of Yunjiao No. 1 also changed significantly. Relevance analysis indicated that the relative richness of Bacillus and Pseudomonas in the rhizosphere of both cultivars increased significantly after QST713 application, which had a good positive correlation with plant height, pseudostem girth, aboveground fresh weight, leaf length, and leaf width. Therefore, the outcome of this study suggests that the biological agent QST713 strain has potential application in banana production for promoting plant growth and modification of soil microbial communities, particularly in the TR4-infected field.

Temporal and spatial evolution of global major grain trade patterns

The complex and volatile international landscape has significantly impacted global grain supply security. This study uses a complex network analysis model to examine the evolution and trends of the global major grain trade from 1990 to 2020, focusing on network topology, centrality ranking, and community structure. There are three major findings. First, the global major grain trade network has expanded in scale, with a growing emphasis on diversification and balance. During the study period, the United States, Canada, China, and Brazil were the core nodes of the network. Grain-exporting countries were mainly situated in Asia, the Americas, and Europe, and importing countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Second, a significant increase in the number of high centrality countries with high export capacity occurred, benefiting from natural advantages such as fertile land and favorable climates. Third, the main global grain trade network is divided into four communities, with the Americas-Europe community being the largest and most widespread. The formation of the community pattern was influenced by geographic proximity, driven by the core exporting countries. Therefore, the world needs to enhance the existing trade model, promote the multi-polarization of the grain trade network, and establish a global vision for the future community. Countries and regions should participate actively in global grain trade security governance and institutional reform, expand trade links with other countries, and optimize import and export policies to reduce trade risks.

Potential Role and International Trade of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in the World

Before the dawn of civilization, humans have hunted and gathered, and the only trustworthy sources of medicine were plants and herbs. The needs for traditional medicine, which are present in both local and international markets, are met in large part by medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs). Due to the abundance of medicinal plants, people in many tribal and rural parts of Bangladesh, like many other nations, have traditionally relied on nature and natural remedies to heal themselves and avoid ailments. The market is flooded with items made from medicinal and aromatic herbs. Plants can be used to produce specialty materials like biocides, cosmetics, medicines, essential oils, dyes, and colorants. Most of the species of MAPs are produced for such industrial uses, but most of them are still wild collected. The increasing demand in botanicals results in a great trade from local to international level. Identifying the significant role played by MAPs in serving health and well-being security, it is very important for the countries to utilize the need to conserve, sustainably use, and commercialize the MAP biodiversity resources responsibly throughout the world. The total trades in MAPs have increased from 2.4 billion USD in 1996 to 6.2 billion USD in 2013 with annual growth rate of 5.4% in past 18 years, and growth rate of 10.7% is noticed in recent years. By 2023, it will be expected that the market for herbal medicines would develop at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.88% and reach USD 1,29,689.3 million. Nowadays, roughly 80% of the world’s population gets their healthcare mostly from plants and plant extracts. According to a World Health Organization (WHO) forecast, the worldwide herbal industry would reach $5 trillion by the year 2050. China, India, Hong Kong, USA, Germany, Republic of Korea, Canada and Poland are the top export countries while top destinations include USA, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, France, Republic of Korea, China and Singapore. The study suggests five major trade centers of MAPs worldwide viz. USA, Hong Kong, Germany, Republic of Korea and China. A number of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Governmental Organizations (GOs) and International Non-Governmental Organization (INGOs) have been working on improvement and expansion of commodity-wise value chains for selected MAPs throughout the world. For commercial developments of MAPs sub-sector, it is required to gather experiences of technical, socio-economical, institutional and policy inputs.

Mutual volatility transmission between assets and trading places

Abstract This article proposes a framework to model the mutual volatility transmission between multiple assets and multiple trading places in different time zones. The model is estimated using a dataset containing daily returns of three stock indices – the MSCI Japan, the EuroStoxx 50, and the S&P 500 – each traded at three major trading places: the stock exchanges in Tokyo, London, and New York. Strong volatility transmission effects can be observed between New York and Tokyo, whereas current volatility in New York mostly depends on past volatility in New York. For the assets in consideration, spillovers are strong across trading zones, but weak across assets, suggesting a close connection between market places but only a loose volatility link between international stock indices. Volatility impulse response functions indicate a long-lasting and comparably large response of volatility in Tokyo, whereas they suggest a quicker volatility decay in London and New York.

Investing in mini-livestock production for food security and carbon neutrality in China

Future food farming technology faces challenges that must integrate the core goal of keeping the global temperature increase within 1.5 °C without reducing food security and nutrition. Here, we show that boosting the production of insects and earthworms based on food waste and livestock manure to provide food and feed in China will greatly contribute to meeting the country's food security and carbon neutrality pledges. By substituting domestic products with mini-livestock (defined as earthworms and insects produced for food or feed) protein and utilizing the recovered land for bioenergy production plus carbon capture and storage, China's agricultural sector could become carbon-neutral and reduce feed protein imports to near zero. This structural change may lead to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2,350 Tg CO2eq per year globally when both domestic and imported products are substituted. Overall, the success of mini-livestock protein production in achieving carbon neutrality and food security for China and its major trading partners depends on how the substitution strategies will be implemented and how the recovered agricultural land will be managed, e.g., free use for afforestation and bioenergy or by restricting this land to food crop use. Using China as an example, this study also demonstrates the potential of mini-livestock for decreasing the environmental burden of food production in general.

Dynamic Connectedness among Forex Markets of Pakistan and Its Major Trading Partners

Globalization and financial liberalization have made market participants and policymakers ponder over the importance of financial interconnectedness and shock spillovers. This discussion is in line with the International Portfolio Theory & Diversification. In this context, this study investigates the intensity and direction of return and volatility spillovers of foreign exchange (FX) markets of Pakistan and its major trading partners. Using an innovative research technique by Diebold and Yilmaz (2009, 2012), we separately compute measures of return and volatility spillovers. Furthermore, we also calculate total spillover, directional spillover, and net spillover indices using a daily data set over the period 1995 to 2019. To capture secular and cyclical movements in the trading partners’ FX markets, we rely upon a rolling window analysis. Our results, based on the spillovers indices, support the presence of dynamic connectedness among currency pairs of the major trading partners. We also note that among the sample economies, the USA, the EU, Singapore, and Malaysia are the main sources and originators of shocks spillover while Pakistan, India, Japan, Kuwait, Singapore, and UAE are net shock receivers. The rolling window analysis indicates that returns and volatility spillovers intensify during the phases of financial or economic anxiety. These results have some important implications for individuals working on risk management, portfolio diversification, and trading strategies.