Unfair Trade Research Articles

From unfair prices to unfair trading practices: Political economy, value chains and 21st century agri‐food policy

AbstractThis article analyzes how value chains play a role in the political economy of agricultural and food policy by (1) discussing historical insights; (2) reviewing an emerging literature on political economy of trade policy and value chains and drawing implications for agricultural and food policy; (3) discussing market power issues with increasing concentration in agri‐food value chains and its implications for government regulations; and (4) presenting a political economy case study of recent regulations that have explicitly targeted value chain structures in the agri‐food sector: the EU regulations on “unfair trading practices (UTPs)”. The case study is of wider relevance since it addresses a key concern in global value chains.

Undeclared (Poly)phosphates Detection in Food of Animal Origin as a Potential Tool toward Fraud Prevention

(Poly)phosphates are approved as water-preserving and emulsifying agents that improve the appearance and consistency of many food products. The labelling of added (poly)phosphates is essential for protecting vulnerable population groups and to prevent unfair trade practices resulting in economic fraud. The problems with (poly)phosphates’ utilisation concerns both analytical and legislative issues, such as: (1) their straightforward detection; (2) excessive addition altering freshness perception and misleading consumers; (3) uncontrolled usage increasing foodstuff weight; (4) application in products where they are not permitted; and (5) no indication on the label. Bearing all these issues in mind, the main purpose of this study was the quantification and screening of the (poly)phosphates profile in meat, marine and dairy products (160 samples), of which 43 were without declared (poly)phosphate treatment. Analysis was completed by high-performance ion-exchange chromatography either with conductometric detection or coupled to Q-Exactive Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry. Although the (poly)phosphates profiles varied greatly according to species and processing type, the following criteria for detection of illicit treatment were established: high orthophosphate level, quantified short-chain (poly)phosphate anions and the presence of long-chain forms. In conclusion, the instrumental platforms used in this study can be recommended to inspection bodies as reliable methods for the detection of food adulteration with (poly)phosphates.

A Study on the Regulation of Unfair Trade Practices on Online Platforms -Focus on European Union and Japanese Online Platform Act-

Under the fourth industrial revolution, online platforms that provide various services to third parties by utilizing information and communication technology or data continue to develop innovative businesses or markets. It plays an important role in the economy and society, such as increasing accessibility to the market for businesses, including small and medium-sized enterprises, and providing benefits for consumers. Services provided by online platform operators are growing through economic characteristics such as data-driven indirect network effects, low marginal costs and economies of scale and scope. A competitive, fair and transparent online ecosystem in which companies act responsibly is also essential for consumer benefits. However, on online platforms, monopolization and oligopoly occur through the platform s data concentration, and the problem of unfair trade between small and medium-sized businesses and online platforms, which are highly dependent on the platform, continues to arise. In particular, online platform operators penalize consumers by acquiring or using personal information by unfair means, and adversely affect fair and free competition. Problems include the abuse of monopoly power of digital platform companies and the self-preferencing such as exposing their products and services to the top of the search rather than other companies brokerage products and services. As a result, countries around the world are organizing or strengthening regulations on online platforms, and the government is also trying to establish a fair and transparent market for online platforms and develop them. In this paper, we examine the types of unfair trade practices on online platforms, and we review relatively the key points of legislation of EU ｢on promoting fairness and transparency for business users of online intermediation services｣, 「Digital Market Act)」,and japanese ｢ Act on the Promotion of Transparency and Fairness of Specific Digital Platforms」.

Does technology transfer from the US to China harm American firms, workers, and consumers? A historical and analytic investigation

Decades of spectacular economic growth have made China into an important geopolitical player. As Chinese companies improve their capabilities across several areas of advanced technology, including artificial intelligence, some US policymakers and pundits lament the country’s ‘unfair trade practices’ and serial ‘theft of American intellectual property’, particularly through so-called forced technology transfer. China hawks claim these practices hurt US companies, workers, and consumers. Do Chinese technology practices harm economic efficiency? What are their distributional consequences? To address these questions, we explore the different modalities of international technology transfer and flesh out their economic consequences. We also investigate the recent history of technology transfer, providing examples from the industrialisation experiences of European countries and the Asian Tigers. We surmise that current Chinese processes are neither novel nor alarming from the standpoint of either economic efficiency or distribution: US firms are collecting record royalty payments for their intellectual property from China and generating gangbuster profits due to their access to Chinese labour, suppliers, and the country’s growing consumer market. American consumers benefit from US–China economic interdependence and so do some workers. The consequences for the US economy as a whole are positive. While we are agnostic about whether these practices threaten America’s national security, we offer ideas for how to prevent China from acquiring its most sensitive military technology.

Archives of Unfair Trade in Amitav Ghosh's Fiction

discovery of rubber and teak: "The rise of global capitalism all occurred together . Gold and silver from the West crossed the Atlantic or the Pacific, it ultimately found its way to Asia (east of Suez) to purchase the "riches of the East" and to allow the otherwise deprived inhabitants of the northwest Eurasian peninsula to share in the fabled Oriental splendours" . This idea stems from Edward Said's contention in Orientalism where he describes 'Orientalism' as the Western attitude that views Eastern societies as exotic, primitive, and inferior.This "ineradicable distinction between Western superiority and Oriental inferiority" is evident in Ghosh's postcolonial textual response in The Glass Palace where the margins write back and lay bare materialistic colonial intent of the past by reconfiguring and reliving the teak trade in the fictional space.

COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND CONSUMER RIGHTS PROTECTION

The present research paper is focused on the protection of consumer rights during COVID-19 pandemic.Consumer is the king of market but locked at home due to COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictions on consumer has hampered all economic activities of the country. Nationwide lockdown in India has created challenges before the consumer. In this attempt is made to understand how the rights of the consume is effected during the lockdown.The study will guide and suggest plan of action to maintain and protect the consumer rights. It is researched based article concerned to better understand the normal rights of the consumer. The study is undertaken during lockdown period to understand the consumer protection system.If consumer is satisfied it helps to maintain the law and order in the country and develop the cooperative attitude among the society. Attempt is made to simplify topic for better administration of the pandemic situation arisen due to COVID-19.This article will help to create awareness among society towards consumer protection. Satisfied consumer assists to develop hands in hands for efficient administration and fight the pandemic situation.The role of government in protecting the consumer rights during lockdown period is remarkable. Attempts were made to measure the experience of the students related to unfair and restricted trade practices.Every consumer is expecting to enjoy their rights but during pandemic it is more realistic to renounce their rights to combat coronavirus.

US-China trade negotiation discourses in the press

AbstractThis article studies trade negotiation discourses during the US-China tariff truce, aiming at investigating the difference of ideologies of the U.S. and China journalists towards trade negotiation. Through integration of theories and methods of corpus linguistics and critical discourse studies and the use of the corpus linguistic software, the study finds that U.S. reports to some extent make itself appear as a victim of the trade, and hope to end unfair trade practices and reduce the chronic trade deficit, while China press focuses more on the harm of raising tariffs not just to each other but the global economy, through communication and dialogue rather than unilateral measures to peacefully resolve trade tensions. Perceived differences in culture have an important influence in the theoretical formation of the differences. The article concludes that the discourse patterns of the coverage imply a rising China and a new level of equilibrium in international politics.

Can Competition Protect Privacy? An Analysis Based on the German Facebook Case

The increasing collection of personal data by online platforms causes concerns among regulators and consumers. Due to privacy-related market failures in multi-sided markets, the question of possible remedies arises. This article aims to determine if a contribution of competition law is needed to enhance data protection rules. The first part will discuss the possible types of datarelated abuses of dominance in the context of the pioneering attempt of the German competition authority. The second part will analyse the drawbacks of the German Facebook case and possibilities to reconcile it with EU competition law. In addition, the article will analyse other ways to tackle privacy issues, including the proposal for a Digital Markets Act (DMA). It is suggested that an intervention of competition law in data protection matters is unnecessary. We argue that it may prevent the emergence of innovative products and services, ultimately harm consumer welfare and competition, as well as put an undue burden on dominant undertakings. It is submitted that a coherent regulation allowing for legal certainty could serve the objective of consumer welfare while preserving the interests of undertakings. Article 102 TFEU, data protection law, personal data, privacy, GDPR, exploitative abuse, unfair trading conditions, German competition law, Digital Markets Act, exclusionary abuse, Facebook case

Online Advertising and the Competition for Data: What Abuse are We Looking For?

Competition law has to adapt to the challenges of the digital era, not by changing its objectives but by changing its analytical tools. At a time where the Commission contemplates going back to using exploitative abuses under Article 102 (a) TFEU, an enquiry into the use of these quite unexplored abuses for prohibiting excessive data gathering seems necessary. Considering that online advertising is the financial lungs of the zero-price economy in which platforms operate, we will address the competitive problems of third-party data processing from the standpoint of online advertising. Thus, we will analyse the functioning of advertising markets, how they interact with the consumer-facing markets as regards data extraction and what competitive problems may arise out of this interaction. The framework being set, we will give a detailed analysis of the Facebook decision from the German Competition Authority (GCA) by which it sanctioned Facebook for abuse of dominant position for its extensive data collection policy. Considering the successes and pitfalls of this attempt, we will suggest an analytical framework for approaching third-party data gathering under European competition law and Article 102 (a) TFEU in particular, taking into account exclusionary effects on the advertising side of platforms. advertising market, Facebook case, abuse of dominance (exploitative), abuse of dominance (exclusionary), third-party data gathering, unfair trading conditions, GDPR, causal link, theory of harm, DMA

China-US Relations in the Post Trump Era

Since US President Donald Trump took charge of White House in 2017, his government termed China as revisionist power and started a Trade war with China that worsened already ongoing geopolitical rivalry between two global giants. It also challenged the established norms of international relations on many fronts by reshaping geopolitical alliances. Trump imposed tariffs and other trade barriers on China with the goal of forcing it to make changes to what the U. S. states unfair trade practices , disrupted a longstanding bipartisan consensus on U. S. policy towards China. The U. S always has had a relation with China based on its own interests. Biden during his tenure as a vice president advocated engagement with Beijing but he criticised the paradigm shift in dealing with China during Trump reign and also objected to 2020 January s trade deal with President Xi Jinping as hollow .

The Antitrust Case Against the Apple App Store

ABSTRACT The Apple App Store is the only channel through which app developers may distribute their apps on iOS. First launched in 2008, the App Store has evolved into a highly profitable marketplace, with overall consumer spend exceeding $50 billion in 2019. However, concerns are being increasingly expressed on both sides of the Atlantic that various practices of Apple with regard to the App Store may breach competition law. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether this is indeed the case and, if so, how these concerns can be addressed. With these aims in mind, the paper first introduces the reader to the app ecosystem and the Apple App Store, with a focus on Apple’s in-app payment policies and the 30 percent commission charged for in-app purchases. After engaging critically with the distinction between apps selling “digital” and apps selling “physical” goods or services, we consider such distinction is unclear, artificial, and unprincipled. The paper then critically reviews several practices of Apple that appear to be at odds with competition law and in particular Article 102 TFEU. We first analyze the issue of market definition and dominance with regard to the App Store. We find that Apple is a monopolist in the market for app distribution on iOS, as it is not subject to any meaningful competitive constraint from alternative distribution channels, such as Android app stores. The result is that Apple is the gateway through which app developers have to go to reach the valuable audience of iOS users. This bottleneck position affords Apple the power to engage in several prima facie anticompetitive practices. A first concern is that Apple may exploit app developers by charging excessive fees for the services it provides and by imposing unfair trading conditions. Second, based on four case studies, the paper illustrates how Apple may use its control of the App Store or iOS to engage in exclusionary behavior to the detriment of rival apps. These practices should be investigated by competition authorities, as they are likely to result in considerable consumer harm, be it in the form of higher app prices, worse user experience or reduced consumer choice. The paper finally proposes a combination of concrete remedies that would address the competition concerns identified.

증권범죄의 결과적 의미에 관한 형법이론적 고찰

증권범죄에서 위반행위자가 얻은 부당이득은 벌금 액수의 산정 기준 및 징역형에 대한 가중처벌 사실에 해당하여 형사처벌의 수준에 결정적인 영향을 미치는 요소로 작용한다. 이처럼 부당이득이 불공정거래행위에 대한 범죄구성요건의 일부가 됨으로써 증권범죄는 범죄행위와 함께 부당이득을 실현하는 결과발생까지도 구성요건에서 요구되는 결과범의 성격을 가지게 된다. 결과범은 형식범과는 달리 행위와 결과 사이에 인과관계를 필요로 하므로, 대법원은 형사법상 대원칙인 책임원칙을 근거로 부당이득의 금액은 불공정거래행위와 상당인과 관계가 인정될 수 있는 범위에 해당하여야 한다는 입장을 취하고 있다. 그러나 형사법의 기본원리인 책임원칙은 행위자가 저지른 불법행위의 내용을 바탕으로 불법의 정도와 유형이 무엇인지를 고려하는 형법원칙이라는 점에서 행위불법의 평가에 관한 책임원칙 등을 바탕으로 위반행위로 인한 결과에 해당하는 증권범죄의 부당이득을 제한하는 것은 형사법의 기본원리와 부합하지 않는 측면이 존재한다. 또한 형법은 사회적 법익 또는 국가적 법익이 개인의 권리 실현을 간접적으로 매개하는 한에서만 이를 보호하므로, 증권범죄를 규제하는 자본시장법의 주된 보호법익이 사회적 법익이라 할지라도 이를 개별적인 인간의 법익으로 구체화할 수 없다면 그 대상은 형법에 의해 보호될 수 없다는 문제가 발생한다. 따라서 이 글에서는 이러한 형법이론적 의문에 관하여 증권범죄의 결과로서 부당이득이 형사법적으로 어떠한 의미를 갖는지 살펴보고, 형법이론의 관점에서 증권범죄의 보호법익을 규명하는 한편, 증권범죄의 결과적 의미를 갖는 부당이득의 개념에 행위반가치(Handlungsunwert)의 요소가 연계되어 고려될 수 있는지 여부를 검토하였다. 형법상 행위자를 형사처벌하기 위해서는 행위불법이 반드시 전제되어야 할 것인데, 그러한 행위반가치의 내용에는 위반행위자가 그 실현을 지향하는 결과적 요소가 일정 부분 내재되어 있는 것이다. 이에 증권범죄의 결과인 부당이득을 근거로 행위자를 형사처벌 하기 위해서는 법문언상 위반행위 자체와의 연관성이 반드시 고려되어야 한다는 점을 고려하면 증권범죄의 결과적 의미를 갖는 부당이득의 개념에는 행위반가치적 요소가 내재되어 있는 것이며, 이로써 증권범죄는 형법상의 불법을 구성하게 된다.

Strategic Narratives in Global Trade Politics: American Hegemony, Free Trade, and the Hidden Hand of the State

Abstract The characterization of the United States as a liberal hegemon seeking to uphold free-market capitalism against the illiberal state capitalism of China and other emerging powers has become commonplace, along with the attendant notion that American economic openness has been exploited by the unfair trade practices of other states. Given their dominance in US political discourse and role in shaping contemporary policy—including fuelling Trump’s trade wars and aggressive unilateral trade actions against all of the United States’ major trading partners, his attacks on the World Trade Organization, and talk of a “new Cold War” between the United States and China—these claims merit far greater scrutiny. In this article, I challenge the stark dichotomy frequently drawn between American “free-market capitalism” and the “state capitalism” of its emerging challengers, arguing that this forms part of a strategic narrative deployed for political purposes, including legitimating the United States’ use of aggressive trade policy measures. An examination of the American hegemon’s actual trade and industrial policies complicates this characterization. Despite presenting itself as a promoter and defender of free trade, I show that the unifying logic of US trade policy has always been the promotion of American economic interests: the United States has engaged in considerable state intervention and trade protectionism, both to shield vulnerable industries and support others to achieve and maintain their global dominance.

Competition Policy vis-a-vis Consumer Welfare

In India, the Competition Act, 2002 controls and maintains up competition in the market through its provisions forbidding anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance. We likewise have the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 which tries to ensure the interests of the consumers against information asymmetry, unfair trade practices, deficiency of services and so on. Under the Competition Act, the Competition Commission of India is the adjudicatory body for issues competition with rivalry while under the Consumer Protection Act, the District Forum, the State Forum and the National Consumer Forum are enabled to manage issues influencing consumers. The focus of this paper is to comprehend and outline the approach and objectives of competition law and consumer law considering their shared objective of accomplishing ‘consumer welfare’. The significance of this activity lies in understanding the job that the Competition Commission of India has assumed all by itself. The Competition Commission of India has taken upon itself to adjudicate even when the impact on competition is circuitous, for example where direct injury to the consumer streams from the adverse effects of the reproved act itself. The issue with this lies in the way that the appropriate remedy would lie with consumer courts. In spite of the fact that the type of such practices would propose a customer law remedy, their distortive consequences for competition may bring about competition law investigation. This paper intends to resolve the wrinkles and give a sound legal and economic reason for the utilization of competition law and consumer law. Despite the fact that reflections and principles are appropriate, an endeavour has been made to attest them as a final essential as this encourages the cycle of for all intents and purposes applying the standards to a given case.

이른바 ‘퍼블리시티권’에서 부정경쟁방지법 일반조항으로(下) - ‘영업을 위한 사용’과 ‘공정한 상관행 위반’ 및 ‘표현의 자유’를 중심으로 -

이른바 ‘퍼블리시티권’에서 부정경쟁방지법 일반조항으로(下) - ‘영업을 위한 사용’과 ‘공정한 상관행 위반’ 및 ‘표현의 자유’를 중심으로 -

When Unfair Trade Is Also at Home: The Economic Sustainability of Coffee Farms

This paper addresses the issue of unfair trade practices, investigating the drivers of the differences between farm-gate and free-on-board (FOB) prices in the most important Arabica coffee producing countries worldwide: Brazil, Guatemala, Colombia, Honduras, Peru, and Ethiopia. Our study looks at those differences taking into account the literature on governance in agri-food chains, with a focus on each country’s domestic market. We performed panel-corrected standard error (PCSE) estimates in ICO and World Bank data, covering the period from 2007 to 2016. In the paper we analyze (i) property rights as a proxy of transaction costs, once it brings more transparency and support to negotiations; (ii) access to electricity as a proxy of supporting infrastructure in communication and information activities, and (iii) quality of roads and quality of ports as proxies of transportation infrastructure. Our results show that heterogeneity in institutions and infrastructure are key in explaining the differences between farm-gate and FOB prices. The transaction costs derived from institutional failures and infrastructure gaps, lead to the use of intermediaries in the coffee supply chain, and this reduces the margin for coffee farmers. Actions that aim to reduce these inefficiencies bring more transparency and lower transaction costs, thereby directly contributing to the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Stock Market Reforms and Stock Market Performance

This paper analyses the impact of stock market reforms on the stock market performance in India using regression based event-study method. We consider nine stock market reforms introduced from 1998 to 2018. We find that the impact of stock market reforms on Nifty trading volume and Nifty return is different. This paper documents that the impact of the additional volatility measures, T+3 and T+2 settlement cycles, and margin provisions for intra-day crystallized losses reforms show a positive impact on trading volume post-reform. In contrast, internet trading, prohibition of fraudulent and unfair trade practices, delisting of equity shares, substantial acquisition of shares and takeovers listing obligations and disclosure requirements reforms decrease the trading volume post-reform. Our results of Nifty return reveal that the additional volatility measures, the T+2 settlement cycle, the prohibition of fraudulent and unfair trade practices, substantial acquisition of shares and takeovers, listing obligations and disclosure requirements have a significant and positive impact on return post-reform. It is evident that the impact of all nine stock market reforms is insignificant on Nifty return.

Blockchain‐Based Trust Auction for Dynamic Virtual Machine Provisioning and Allocation in Clouds

Cloud computing uses virtualization technology to provide users with different types of resources in the form of services. The third party plays a crucial role in coordinating cloud market between cloud providers and users. As for providing services or trading, the extra broker fees are required for the middleman because the third party facilitates transactions. Moreover, there is no guarantee that the third party is trusted, which can lead to information leakage, data tampering, and unfair trading. Blockchain technology is an emerging technology that can store and communicate data between entities that unnecessarily trust each other. To resolve the problems, this paper presents the blockchain‐based trust and fair system and develops the smart contract of auction and transaction. The prototype system is implemented based on the Hyperledger Fabric. The experimental results prove the feasibility of the scheme.

Challenges of Managing Risk in Small Holder Enterprises of Single Mothers in Kasoa Business District of Ghana

The study set out to examine the challenges of managing risk in small holder enterprises of single mothers in Ghana with the search light on the Kasoa business district of the country. Among its objectives are examining how suitable the single mothers are in running the business of their choice, identifying any external assistance put forward to sustain their businesses as well as enumerate risk factors bedeviling their small businesses within the Kasoa enclave. In conducting the study, the researcher deemed it appropriate to employ the random sampling technique to select ten (10) brisk business areas of Kasoa where purposive sampling technique helps in identifying single mothers in those areas for their views on the objectives of the study. The interview guide constituted the main research instrument in this qualitative study while basic descriptive statistics was laced up with Statistical Packages of Social Science (SPSS) to enable analysis and interpretation to be conducted in respect of the data and information captured from the field. Findings of the study noted that single mothers of Kasoa basically wielded no formal training in the business they find themselves and that they copy other competitors strategy to operate their businesses. It also came to light that they basically start business with funds extorted by Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) i.e. recalcitrant fathers, parents and other friends to start business in order to help themselves and their children. The study noted further that no external assistant is extended to the single mothers either from Ghana Union Traders Association (GUTA), Gender Ministry, Local government or the banks and that they are virtually on their own. It turns out unequivocally from the study that these single mothers hardly receive enough and spend all such funds to help themselves and their unfortunate children and this virtually leaves no funds to strengthen their working capital. Some even sadly resort to prostitution to solicit funds to continue business. Banks in the area discriminate heavily against single mother traders, because they see them as high risk areas and will only help after they have provided credible records concerning their operations which are often non-existent. On risk factors, as mentioned earlier on, the ladies spend all their income on themselves and their children and therefore find it difficult to sustain their operations. This situation is exacerbated by unfair trade practices emanating from cheaper dumped goods from China which disrupt price mechanism in the area. The traders also complained of astronomically high interest rate charged by microfinance institutions which often introduce repayment leading to loan default and its concomitant of police action. Shops in the Kasoa area are so expensive that single mothers can hardly afford and for that matter they sell along the streets without any permanent trading enclaves. In the light of the challenges enumerated above, the study recommended that GUTA as a matter of urgency should liaise with the Gender Ministry, Local Government Ministry as well as other friendly NGOs not only to train and refinance the single mothers but also establish modern crèche and recreational centers for their children. In this way, the single mothers can have the peace of mind to irk a decent living and contribute effectively towards the socio-economic development of the country.

Variation of market power across different food supply chains

Research background: The analysis of the competitiveness between producers, processors and retailers in food supply chains has always been drawing a high level of attention. It has become even more topical issue for researchers and policymakers after the global food crisis in 2008. Purpose of the article: The goal of this paper is to analyse empirical studies of market power and to investigate if some supply chains are systematically more prone to excessive market power than others. Methods: For this study, we have collected a wide range of recent studies investigating the processors’ market power index in the food supply chains. In total, in our analysis, we used 472 unique market power index estimates and employed various linear regression models to investigate their determinants. Findings & Value added: Our findings suggest that, on average, the reported degree of market power in the USA is almost twice as high as in other countries. At the same time, market power estimates related to the meat, dairy and horticulture industries are systematically higher than the ones related to other supply chains. Finally, we observed that, on average, supply chains related to highly perishable products tend to have lower market power estimates associated with them, than other supply chains. Our results have important implications for future investigation of the structural source of market power and unfair trade practices.