World Trade Organization Member Countries Research Articles

Comparative analysis of state support for agricultural producers in Russia and in the world

Despite numerous trade disputes within the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding the overestimation of the support level for agriculture by individual countries of the world, subsidizing farmers by their own governments not only does not decrease, but also tends to increase in general. In the conditions of the WTO member countries open markets, the world countries food security, including Russia, largely depends not only on the competitiveness of their own agriculture, but also on the support of their own agricultural sector commensurate with other states. Based on this, it is an urgent task to track the scale of state influence on the industry in other countries in order to avoid excessive competition of imported products. Thus, the purpose of the article is to study the dynamics of state support for agriculture in the countries of the world based on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) data. The results of the work are detailed information on the comparative level of state support for the agro-industrial complex in the countries of the world, and the amount of support for the Russian agricultural industry corresponds to the world average. To process the information received in order to present the results of the work as accessible as possible, tabular and graphical methods are used.

REVIEW ON THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPARENCY IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE BASED ON THE RULES OF THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION

This study aims to obtain information and analyze the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding the importance of transparency in international trade between WTO member countries, where supporting information and data are needed in the sustainability of trade transactions. In international trade between WTO member countries, there are various economic, political and social backgrounds from developed countries (developed countries), developing countries (developing countries), and less developed (least-developed countries). This background encourages the strengthening of transparency in trade in goods and services through a mechanism that is agreed upon and implemented jointly, so that it is expected that each WTO member country can provide and obtain reliable and up-to-date information and supporting data. The transparency mechanism has the main objective of providing smooth trade in goods and services and reducing obstacles related to obtaining the required information and data. However, in implementing transparency, WTO member countries are also often faced with challenges, such as in the case of the global crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic whose impact has been felt by all WTO member countries. All stakeholders, starting from the government, employers, workers, and so on, need to work together in carrying out compliance with the transparency mechanism as stipulated in the WTO rules to realize smooth international trade.

INFLUENCE OF THE WTO'S AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE (AOA) POLICY ON INDONESIAN COFFEE IMPORTS 2007-2013

As one of the policies issued by the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Agreement on Agriculture is an agricultural commodity agreement that binds all WTO member countries. As the fourth largest coffee producer globally, Indonesia must accept this policy as the exit to Indonesian coffee to various countries around the world. The study's findings get three things that influence agreement on agriculture (AoA) on Indonesian coffee imports. First, the opening of market access; Second, the reduction of domestic subsidies; Third, the removal of export subsidies. The method used in this study is qualitative-transcribed.

The Federal Coal Leasing Program as an Actionable Subsidy Under International Trade Law

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is often criticized for standing in the way of responses to climate change. Restrictions on domestic renewable energy subsidies under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) have drawn particular disfavor. But critics overlook the role that the SCM Agreement can play in similarly disciplining domestic fossil fuel subsidies. This Note demonstrates that potential role by focusing on one prominent fossil fuel subsidy in the United States: The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) coal leasing program on federal lands. The program is an actionable subsidy under the SCM Agreement because it provides coal mining rights to private companies at artificially low prices. In response, WTO member countries should challenge the BLM’s program, either by initiating a dispute at the WTO or by imposing countervailing duties on U.S. imports. WTO-authorized retaliation could shift the political calculus that keeps the current program in place, meaningfully reducing U.S. emissions.

The world trade organization accession as one of the Serbian foreign policy goals

Accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), among other things, can be viewed as one of Serbia's foreign policy goals. Observed in this way, the successful completion of the accession process will bring easier market access to the all WTO member countries, but also fulfills one of the key conditions in the negotiations for Serbia's accession to the European Union (Chapter 30). Serbia is an import-dependent country and therefore has a high foreign trade deficit. Our country trades mostly with those countries with which has been signed some kind of trade agreement (EU, CEFTA, Russia, Turkey). That indicates that its entry into the WTO would be beneficial and would facilitate the establishment of trade flows with new partners. Accession would also be useful for an export-oriented model of economic growth. The World Trade Organization is the only global international organization dealing with trade rules between countries. The WTO is the result of multiannual international negotiations aimed at liberalizing international trade. Multilateral negotiations under the WTO umbrella offer the potential to maintain long-term growth, stimulate trade and investment and sustainable economic development. Serbia with its capacities, as a small country, is not in a position to independently create, develop and maintain economic relations with many countries in the world. Therefore, the WTO membership will enable domestic companies and businessmen to export under much more favorable conditions to countries with which Serbia has not yet concluded trade agreements. Serbia started accession to the WTO in 2005 but has not yet completed this process. Taking into account the results of Serbia so far in this process, as well as defining the remaining open issues and problems, we point to the many obstacles our country has encountered, but also on the ways in which the goal can be successfully achieved.

Sanctions by the WTO Member Countries as a Catalyst for the Development of a Competitive Import Substitution by Domestic Enterprises

The article analyzes the economic and geopolitical situation prevailing in the world at the present stage of development. Imposition of sanctions by the European Union member states against the Russian Federation, which are in total disregard of the norms of the World Trade Organization, is nothing other than a sign of weakness in the face of a rapidly developing country aspiring to dominate and become the undisputed reference point for the entire international community. The authors conclude that a violation of the established norms by the World Trade Organization member countries did not result in the negative effects for the economy of our country expected by Western partners; on the contrary, it was an incentive to activate the latent reserves of domestic business entities to implement competitive import substitution.

TRIPS and Article 27.1

The member countries of WTO have to abide by the rule of TRIPs which all the member state does as it is mandatory. But the TRIPs criteria are too strict to be implemented by all the member states equally. Thus there are exceptions, over compliance, textual silence and flexibilities provided by the TRIPs agreement for the countries to frame their national laws as per the need of its society but in compliance with TRIPs. Therefore it is the choice laid on the country to abide by the TRIPs strictly or have a lenient implementation of it. When it come to the interpretation of the term “inventive step” TRIPS provides a flexibility by not define the term. It is left on the various countries to interpret the terms according to its convenience. The World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement has set out a minimum standard in order to protect intellectual property which included patent for pharmaceuticals has been criticized by various countries because it resulted in the increase level of patent protection on drug prices. The TRIPS Agreement has become an important tool in order to standardize the protection of pharmaceuticals in the world and this is actively sought by government of developed countries and also by big pharmaceutical companies. The Agreement consists of various IPR issues in a manner that no international convention had dealt with previously including both substantive and enforcement rules in some area with considerable detail. The article is an effort to search for a concrete guideline when it comes to interpretation of “inventive steps” and focusing on different countries implementing it.

ALBANIA IN THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION: COMMITMENTS AND CHALLENGES

Albania joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) on September 8, 2000, aiming at a more active participation of the country in the multilateral trade system; the expansion of the internal market and creation of a more attractive environment to foreign investment; the commitment to good governance through the rule of law ensuring the adherence to the rules of the game that cannot change according to wishes; establishing the foundations for the achievement of economic and commercial standards with a view to joining the European Union as well as a fair and more favorable treatment of domestic and foreign commercial operators. This paper aims to primarily describe the Albanian commitments under the WTO which consist in three main areas: goods trade, service trade, intellectual property as well as two dimensions: the alignment of the Albanian legislation with that of the WTO and the Albanian concrete offer in each of the above mentioned areas. However, in order to create a more comprehensive view, the paper also describes the transparency commitments related to multilateral agreements. WTO represents a multilateral trading system based on principles and rules expressed in a full legal package, according to which each member state enjoys its rights and owes obligations. In fulfillment of the commitments stemming from the membership of the WTO, the Albanian government has reduced the customs duty rates which has lead to increasing trade exchange with the WTO member countries. In this context, honoring the commitments is a matter of particular significance to Albania. Keywords: World Trade Organization, Agreement, Commitments, Trade System, Albania.

Addressing the Global Climate Change Problem in GATT/WTO Law: The Vision of a New International Climate Law Based on International Distributive Justice

‘International distribution justice’, not ‘most favored nation’ (MFN), is the appropriate core principle to govern a law of obligations such as that of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The international distributive justice principle delivers opportunity for economic development because it observes the ‘differences’ principle that characterizes distributive justice, whereas the MFN principle does not, for it distributes obligations erga omnes partes. On the international distributive justice model, obligations are distributed in accordance with WTO member countries’ capacities to bear them. The distribution metric is simple: the degrees of obligation to observe WTO law should range from ‘nil’ to ‘absolute’ along the range of ‘least-developed’, ‘developing’ and ‘developed’ countries. The rank ordering of countries should occur on the basis of their gross domestic product (GDP) status alone, for that status is sufficiently indicative of every country’s economic condition. Accordingly, the current WTO sense of ‘least-developed’, ‘developing’ and ‘developed’ countries should be abandoned in favor of their distinction in terms of their GDP status. Quite properly, there is global interest in the development of a climate law that will deliver the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The core principle of that law must also be international distributive justice, in order that there be an equitable distribution of the cost burden of GHG reduction. The concept of international distributive justice is discernible in the ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’ doctrine of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), but there is no clear relationship between MEAs and the WTO/GATT legislative scheme. A new climate law securely based on the international distributive justice principle will determine that relationship once it is also the core principle of WTO law. Then only the legislative power of the United Nations is required to give the new climate law a coercive power that obliges all GHG emitters.

Trade liberalization and tuberculosis incidence: a longitudinal multi-level analysis in 22 high burden countries between 1990 and 2010

Background Trade liberalization is promoted by the World Trade Organization (WTO) through a complex architecture of binding trade agreements. This type of trade, however, has the potential to modify the upstream and proximate determinants of tuberculosis (TB) infection. We aimed to analyse the association between trade liberalization and TB incidence in 22 high-burden TB countries between 1990 and 2010.Methods and findings A longitudinal multi-level linear regression analysis was performed using five different measures of trade liberalization as exposure [WTO membership, duration of membership, trade as % of gross domestic product, and components of both the Economic Freedom of the World Index (EFI4) and the KOF Index of Globalization (KOF1)]. We adjusted for a wide range of factors, including differences in human development index (HDI), income inequality, debts, polity patterns, conflict, overcrowding, population stage transition, health system financing, case detection rates and HIV prevalence.None of the five trade indicators was significantly associated with TB incidence in the crude analysis. Any positive effect of EFI4 on (Log-) TB incidence over time was confounded by differences in socio-economic development (HDI), HIV prevalence and health financing indicators. The adjusted TB incidence rate ratio of WTO member countries was significantly higher [RR: 1.60; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.12–2.29] when compared with non-member countries.Conclusion We found no association between specific aggregate indicators of trade liberalization and TB incidence. Our analyses provide evidence of a significant association between WTO membership and higher TB incidence, which suggests a possible conflict between the architecture of WTO agreements and TB-related Millennium Development Goals. Further research is needed, particularly on the relation between the aggregate trade indices used in this study and the hypothesized mediators and also on sector-specific indices, specific trade agreements and other (non-TB) health outcomes.

How to make progress in disciplining overfishing subsidies

Abstract Sumaila, U. R. 2013. How to make progress in disciplining overfishing subsidies. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 70: 251–258. The World Trade Organization (WTO) has been working for more than seven years now to discipline overfishing subsidies, as mandated by the global community, without success. I argue that this failure is partly because WTO negotiators aim for an all-inclusive deal, i.e. negotiations are conducted as a “single undertaking”, whereby results must be achieved in all areas. Negotiators are required to broker an all-inclusive deal for all maritime WTO member countries and for all fisheries, whether domestic or international; small or large scale; developing or developed country fisheries. It is argued here that this commitment to a “single undertaking” does not align the incentive to remove subsidies with national interests, and therefore needs to be changed by splitting the world's fisheries into domestic and international fisheries. In this way, the battle for eliminating overfishing subsidies for some stocks would shift to home countries, and for others this would still rest with the international community. This split, it is argued, would align the incentives and improve the chances of eliminating overfishing subsidies.

The Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement and Agriculture in South Asia

One of the main objectives of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is to facilitate world’s trade and production. It enforces legally binding multilateral agreements on trade in goods, services and trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights. The Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement was implemented to regulate standards of Intellectual Property (IP) regulations in WTO member countries. Being a member of the WTO and a signatory to the TRIPs Agreement, it was compulsory for Sri Lanka and five other South Asian countries (Bangladesh, Nepal, the Maldives, India and Pakistan) to formulate its IP regulations to comply with the TRIPs Agreement. According to the agreement, by 2006 India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and by 2013 Bangladesh and Nepal have to provide legal protection to plant varieties and farmers’ traditional knowledge via patents or by an effective sui generis system or by both. All of the above six countries have during the past 15 years implemented or drafted several acts to comply with the TRIPs Agreement. Sri Lanka has passed the Intellectual Property Rights Act No. 36 of 2003 to comply with the TRIPs Agreement. However, this Act does not provide protection for plant varieties and farmers’ traditional knowledge as it does not allow patenting of plants. Due to several reasons such as lack of demand from civil society, a poor legal system, lack of properly established institutional system, etc,. Sri Lanka was unable to build an effective intellectual property rights regime complying with the agreement, especially for the agricultural sector. Further, due to a delay in establishing rules and regulations to comply with the agreement, the Sri Lankan agricultural sector faces several difficulties in international trade and it has also lost a number of opportunities to use its own plant varieties for the benefit of future generations. The article suggests several techniques and methods that could be followed in implementing intellectual property rights in agriculture in order to promote investments and accelerate trade especially in Sri Lanka. And also it suggests the importance of having a regional centre to manage intellectual property rights effectively among South Asian countries.

The Have Nots Have It: Triumph Of Developing Countries At The World Trade OrganizationMeeting In Geneva

In July 2004, 147 World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries met in Geneva where the developed countries agreed to cut back and eventually eliminate an estimated $350 billion of their farm and export subsidies. The accord was hammered out by five WTO members including India and Brazil and submitted to the WTOs plenary session where it was finally ratified on July 31, 2004. The Fifth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization held in Cancun in September 2003 collapsed from inside as internal squabbles and irreconcilable philosophical differences developed between the developed countries and the developing countries. The WTO, which started with noble objectives of raising the global standards of living through international trade agreements and cooperation among the WTO member countries, appeared to be teetering on the verge of a complete collapse. Over the past decade, through five ministerial conferences, the WTO member countries gradually got polarized into two main blocks, the haves and the have nots, the developed countries and the still developing countries respectively. One of the important items of contention was the issue of reduction and elimination of the huge farm subsidies in the European Union (EU) and the United States (US). At the 2003 WTO conference in Cancun, 21 of the developing countries formed a group, known as G-21 initiated under the leadership of Brazil and India, and insisted on discussions for elimination of the farm subsidies of the EU-US combine. The EU and US governments give billions of dollars worth of agricultural and export subsidies annually to their farmers that allow them to have a competitive advantage in international markets in effect preventing agricultural producers in developing countries from having access to global markets. The EU delegates insisted that the four Singapore issues must be dealt with first before including any discussions on the issues of farm subsidies on the agenda. The G-21 over night swelled into G-70. The developing countries refused to be pushed into a corner and have proved that they are now a force to reckon with. The WTO Cancun conference came to a dramatic end without any agreement, leaving the negotiations in a deadlock. At the historic July 2004 WTO negotiations in Geneva, an accord has been reached under which the developed countries agreed to reduce and eventually eliminate their export and farm subsidies. The developing countries also agreed to lower their tariffs on imports from EU-US and other developed countries. The accord is expected to pave the way for the resumption of the WTO Doha Round of multilateral negotiations to liberalize world trade.

The Merchants of Education: Global Politics and the Uneven Education Liberalization Process within the WTO

The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is one of the principal treaties of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The agreement covers 12 services sectors, including education (WTO 2000). Since this agreement was created, the global governance of education scenario has become more complex because trade disciplines and commercial rules have become relevant to education regulation activities at the national and subnational levels. The system of rules of the GATS pushes for the progressive liberalization of education all over the world and for the constitution of a new international regime on trade in education. However, if we observe the actual results of the GATS negotiations, it does not seem that the “globalization project” impelled by the agreement has been totally successful. Most of the WTO member countries avoided committing education during the Uruguay round (1986–94) and, when they did, they introduced numerous limitations and exceptions. Something similar happened during the more recent Doha round (2001, ongoing in 2009). The uneven evolution of the GATS raises several questions. Specifically, the question this article tries to answer is this: Why do countries decide to participate—or not to participate—in the new multilateral “free-trade in education regime” through the adoption of liberalization commitments within the GATS? This question will be answered through an explanation based on mechanisms. In doing so, I aim to reveal the causal mechanisms of education liberalization within the GATS and to explore how the effectiveness of these mechanisms is contingent on contextual conditions and national politics. The article is composed of four sections. First, I describe the object of my research and my framework of inquiry, which is inspired by the Globally Structured Agenda for Education (GSAE) approach (Dale 2000). Second, I explore the structures that frame the liberalization process, referring specifically to the WTO rules that affect more directly negotiations in service sectors. Third, I discuss the preferences settlement of countries in GATS and

Understanding the Conflicts between the TRIPS Agreement and the Human Right to Health

This paper analyses the relationship between the agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the human right to health. The paper shows that the TRIPS agreement is in conflict with the human right to health as contained in human rights treaties such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The paper also discusses the limitations of the flexibilities in the TRIPS agreement in safeguarding the human right to health. The WTO member countries have taken steps in order to mitigate the adverse impact that the TRIPS agreement may have on human right to health. However, the paper discusses the limitations of these measures and shows that notwithstanding their limited significance, these measures may not be adequately effective in enabling countries to promote, protect and fulfill the human right to health.

TRIPS post-2005 and access to new antiretroviral treatments in southern countries: issues and challenges

Until 2005 some developing countries with pharmaceutical manufacturing capacities especially India used the transitional period allowing local manufacturers to produce and sell generic versions of first-generation ART drugs patented in industrialized countries and originally produced and sold at high prices by Western pharmaceutical companies. Thanks to international competition between generic manufacturers and these companies significant price reductions were achieved for the large majority of these drugs. This was a key factor in the implementation and strengthening of access to AIDS treatment in developing countries and a strategic element in the World Health Organization (WHO) 3by5 plan. However with the end of the extended deadline for TRIPS compliance the scenario is likely to change radically. Considering the end of the transitional period which effectively will prohibit the free manufacture of newer and innovative antiretroviral generations to mark a key episode in the history of the fight against AIDS in developing countries this review will provide an overview of the meaning and consequences of this turning point and to present some of the new challenges of the post-2005 period. (excerpt)

Trade adjustment in the WTO system: are more safeguards the answer?

For countries to engage successfully in the international trading system, their industries, firms, and workers must respond continually to new conditions of competition. The continuing need to adjust arises both from policy changes approved in multilateral negotiations—e.g. implementation of trade liberalization commitments, preference erosion, or adverse terms-of-trade consequences of export subsidy elimination—and from ongoing changes in competitive pressures inherent in a liberal trading system—e.g. effects on comparative advantage of changes in technology or factor supplies. But the political response to a situation calling for adjustment is often a call for ‘safeguards’—whether as an ex ante provision in negotiated agreements or as an ex post measure once the agreement has been signed and the reality of new conditions takes shape. This paper examines the range of adjustment problems confronting the current and future international trading system, the economic arguments for intervention to deal with these problems, the adjustment environment as set out in the current World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements, and proposals for reform. While the adjustment problems we discuss apply to both rich and poor WTO member countries, we highlight the issues of adjustment especially relevant for developing countries.

THE 'HUMAN RIGHTS APPROACH' ADVOCATED BY THE UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND BY THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION:: IS IT RELEVANT FOR WTO LAW AND POLICY?

The today universal recognition of 'inalienable' human rights implies that the legitimacy and legality of all government measures, including rules and decisions of intergovernmental organizations, depend also on their respect for human rights as defined in national constitutions and international law. This contribution argues that the universal human rights obligations of every Member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) pursue objectives (like protection of personal autonomy, freedom of choice, legal security) that complement those of liberal trade and may be legally relevant context for the interpretation of WTO rules (chapters I-II). The human rights approach to international trade advocated by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (chapter III) could, like the 1996 WTO and 1998 ILO Declarations on core labor standards (chapter IV), promote synergies between human rights law and GATT/WTO law. The 'basic rights approach' to trade liberalization in European integration (chapter V), as well as the GATT-, WTO- and EC dispute settlement jurisprudence (chapter VI) confirm that, on the level of principles, human rights and liberal trade rules do not conflict with each other. The emerging 'human right to democratic governance' requires, however, more effective parliamentary involvement, citizen participation, and 'deliberative democracy' in WTO matters (chapter VII). A WTO Declaration (1) confirming the commitment of WTO Members to respect their existing human rights obligations in all policy areas; (2) supporting the progressive development of human rights through the competent UN and other human rights bodies; and (3) welcoming the UN initiatives for harnessing the complementarity of WTO rules and human rights for welfare-increasing cooperation among free citizens, could enhance the 'input-legitimacy' as well as the 'output-legitimacy'of WTO negotiations -- without creating new WTO obligations or new WTO competencies. The limited mandate of the WTO, however, and the divergent human rights concepts and diverse constitutional traditions in WTO member countries, make a consensus among WTO Members on such a Declaration unlikely. Even though the WTO should leave the interpretation, monitoring, and progressive development of human rights to specialized human rights bodies outside the WTO, WTO dispute settlement bodies may be legally required to address arguments that human rights may be relevant legal context for interpreting WTO rules (chapter VIII). Oxford University Press 2004; all rights reserved, Oxford University Press.

Globalization, WTO, and ASEAN

I. Introduction The pervasive effects of the process of globalization are being felt in poorer economies, at least as much as in richer ones. They are also being affected by, and are affecting, international institutions such as the World Trade Organization (WTO). The WTO's evolution in turn is altering the policy options of developing and transition economies. Furthermore, the ability of those countries to influence the WTO is beginning to increase. This three-way interaction between globalization, the WTO, and the trade and development strategies of developing and transition economies is explored in this article with a view to drawing out implications for further action by governments of Southeast Asian countries for the early twenty-first century. Those actions certainly involve removing, or not introducing, certain types of government interventions in markets, especially those whose inappropriateness is increasing with globalization. However, attention is also given to the question of what new government actions may be required -- at international as well as at national levels -- to maintain or improve the smooth functioning of economic and political markets. The remainder of this article is organized as follows. Section II defines globalization and briefly describes indicators of its growth. Section III summarizes the technological aspects of globalization relevant to ASEAN countries. Section IV notes the changes in national economic policies that have contributed to globalization. As discussed in Section V, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and now the WTO have added significantly to those governmental contributions to globalization. The concluding section of the article explores the implications of these developments for the policies and strategies of ASEAN countries in some detail. Particular attention is given to rural development strategies, because globalization is likely to strengthen urbanization and thereby add to the burden of adjustment to economic growth that rural areas traditionally bear. II. Definition and Extent of Globalization(1) Globalization could be defined simply as the decline in costs of doing business internationally. One of its key effects is to enhance the international integration of markets for goods, services, technology, ideas, financial and other capital, and labour. An indicator of its progress is reducing differences in prices for those products and factors across space (within and between countries). That and related effects of globalization are being felt by all countries of the world, especially in open economies such as Southeast Asia. As was evident in Seattle in late 1999, when trade ministers of WTO member countries tried to meet the expectation of launching the next round of multilateral trade negotiations, not everyone favours globalization. Trade union representatives of some low-skilled workers in rich countries fear it threatens their members' jobs, while environmental groups fear it contributes to national and global environmental problems. Others simply prefer their country to be more self-sufficient in producing what its citizens consume. Protestors from among such groups were sufficiently mobilized in Seattle to at least contribute to the postponing of the launch of the next WTO round. Both technological and governmental barriers contribute to the costs of interacting internationally. Falls in transport costs, the huge decline in communication and information costs, and cuts in tariff and non-tariff governmental barriers to trade in goods and services have combined in the late twentieth century to accelerate globalization to an unprecedented speed that shows no sign of abating. While the extent of the acceleration in globalization cannot be captured in a single statistic, several provide partial indications of what is involved. A standard indicator is the comparison between trade and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth. …