马克思恩格斯的国际贸易政策思想及其当代启示

Marx and Engels’ Thoughts on International Trade Policy and Its Contemporary Enlightenment

马克思、恩格斯认为自由贸易是资本无障碍的国际自由流动,是国际贸易发展的总体趋势。先进国家因在生产环节上居于国际垄断地位,会采取自由贸易政策。而落后国家为保护幼稚工业部门,则须相应地采取保护贸易政策;但当国内市场达到饱和后,也应转向自由贸易。马克思、恩格斯研究指出,自由贸易会使资源禀赋优越的落后国家获得"后发优势",打破先进国家的国际垄断地位。先进国家因此不得不转而回归保护贸易,以抵御新兴工业国的市场扩张。这是国际贸易政策发展变化的内在规律,也是不同国家和地区兴衰更替的奥秘所在。这一规律是由资本追求利润最大化的本质属性所决定的。依据马克思、恩格斯的发现可知,当前先进国家实行保护贸易政策的目的是为了维护、重建生产领域的国际垄断地位。但是,此举未必能够奏效。因为先进国家各经济部门已经形成了垄断,国内市场上的自由竞争不复存在。垄断组织已经可以依靠垄断地位获得利润,失去了创新的动力,因而也就无助于产业复兴。尽管如此,先进国家的保护贸易政策在一定程度上仍然可以阻击"后发优势",这给新兴工业国的进一步发展提出了理论与实践难题。

Marx and Engels believed that free trade is the free flow of capital without barriers,and is the overall trend of international trade development.Advanced countries will adopt free trade policies because they occupy an international monopoly in the production process.In order to protect the infant industrial sector,backward countries must adopt protective trade policies accordingly;but when the domestic market reaches saturation,they should also turn to free trade.Marx and Engels pointed out that free trade will enable backward countries with superior resource endowments to gain "late-mover advantage" and break the international monopoly of advanced countries.As a result,advanced countries have to return to protected trade to resist the market expansion of newly industrialized countries.This is the inherent law of the development and change of international trade policies,and it is also the mystery of the rise and fall of different countries and regions.This law is determined by the essential attribute of capital seeking to maximize profit.According to the findings of Marx and Engels,the purpose of the current advanced countries to implement protective trade policies is to maintain and rebuild their international monopoly in the field of production.However,this may not be effective.Because various economic sectors in advanced countries have formed monopolies,free competition in the domestic market no longer exists.Monopoly organizations can already rely on their monopoly position to make profits,and they have lost the motivation to innovate,so they will not help the industry revive.Nevertheless,the protective trade policies of advanced countries can still block the "late-mover advantage" to a certain extent,which poses theoretical and practical problems for the further development of newly industrialized countries.