Formal or Informal? The Dispute Settlement Mechanisms of China's Free Trade Agreements

The dispute settlement mechanism(DSM) has long been the focus of attention because of its significant role in the institutional construction of China's free trade agreements(FTAs). Thus, this paper is to make an analysis of the DSMs of China's established FTAs from a legal perspective of international regime study, which leads to the finding of a co-existence mode of formal and informal DSMs in China's FTAs. This paper also discusses the motivation and significance of such a choice.

China's Free Trade Agreements with ASEAN,Japan and Korea:A Comparative Analysis

The role of China in East Asia ＇s recovery from the recent global finaneial and economic crisis highlights China ＇s position as an engine of growth for this region. From the viewpoint of China, there are many potential gains from entering into free trade agreements （FTAs） with its neighbors, who collectively form a large and fast-growing market. In this paper, we qualitatively and quantitatively assess the four main permutations of China＇s FTAs with East Asian major economies： China-ASEAN, China-Japan, China-Korea and ASEAN＋ 3. We compare the effects of these FTAs on China ＂s output and welfare. Our comparative analysis shows that China will gain from all three bilateral FTAs, while gaining the most from the ASEAN＋ 3. Because forming a region-wide FTA, such as the ASEAN＋ 3, is expected to be gradual and difficult, China shouM continue to engage in bilateral FTAs as a mediumterm and alternative strategy. However, in the long term, China should pursue a regionwide FTA.

China＇s Anti-dumping Problems and Mitigation through Regional Trade Agreements

The present paper explores the opportunities for China＇s regional trade agreement （RTA） initiatives to mitigate its anti-dumping problems. The paper highlights the severity and discriminatory nature of China＇s anti-dumping problems. The high concentration of the share of anti-dumping actions taken by the top 4 and top 8 anti-dumping initiators is noted. Our finding of a weak effect of existing RTAs on mitigating China ＇s anti-dumping problems supports the argument that China could become more active in mitigating anti-dumping problems through RTA negotiations. An RTA can include a higher level of openness in exchange for an improvement in regional anti-dumping provisions. Case studies on RTAs involving the EU, the USA and India offer some precedents for offering inducements and modifying regional anti-dumping provisions. The approaches for China may lie in obtaining market economy status from intensive anti-dumping initiators at RTA levels and also altering regional anti-dumping provisions that could be put in place in exchange for some potential concessions.

Impact of openness, economic policy reform and regional shocks on trade and growth of Thailand： An econometric study

Thailand has currently enhanced and promoted intensive trade and investment liberalization and implemented long-term growth policy according with current regional economic integration, WTO obligations and globalization. Nevertheless, several recent internal and external factors e.g. the massive SARS and avian flu outbreaks, the Indian Ocean tsunami devastation, the Asia financial crisis and domestic policy reforms （ICSEAD, 2006） have also impeded this policy. While the issues are important for Thailand and developing countries in Asia, only limited research has been undertaken to investigate them. The paper conducts a substantive quantitative study to contribute to these trade and development policy issues. A new econometric modelling policy method, namely the generalized gravity theory （Tran Van Hoa, 2004） is used to develop a simple flexible simultaneous-equation econometric model of Thailand＇s openness model with its seven major trade partners （ASEAN-4, Australia, the USA, the EU, China, Japan and India）. Using data from the ICSEAD, the World Development Indicators and the Bank of Thailand databases, the paper reveals efficient and reliable empirical findings on trade-growth causality, trade determination including the impact of shocks and policy reform on trade and growth between Thailand and its major trade partners over the past two decades. The paper also provides evidence on the linkages between trade in goods, FDI and services and regional economic integration for more credible policy implications.

Macroeconomic and Social Impacts of Economic Partnership Agreements on Ivorian Economy： A New Assessment

This study reassesses the macroeconomic and social impacts of Economic Partnership Agreements （EPAs） on Ivorian economy using Computable General Equilibrium （CGE） model with positive externalities of public investment in education, health, and economic infrastructure. Previous studies highlight negative effect of these agreements stressing particularly on losses in government revenues due to the removal of all tariffs on imports. This analysis aims to provide some insight into this question by refreshing the debate to show how this situation could be transformed into opportunities for Ivory Coast in order to promote growth and reduce poverty. To do so, this study postulates that government spending （investment） in economic infrastructure （roads, bridges, communication network, etc.）, in education and health sectors produces positive externalities in each industry. This assumption has not been set anymore in previous studies. Simulation results reveal that, despite this decline in government revenues, if it invests in economic infrastructure, health and education sector, EPAs will generate more revenue for government due to the rise in income tax on firms and households, and tax on overall production. Furthermore, household income will increase which will in turn stimulate （final） consumption. There won＇t also be a decline in economic growth.

CEFTA as Trade Agreement and Its Role in Its Countries＇ Economic Development and E.U. Integration （Case of Albania）

CEE （Central Eastern European） region comprises a group of countries at a relatively similar stage of economic development and with the common objective of becoming member of EU. The size of the market has pushed CEE countries to find ways towards a larger market. Joint forces, into free trade agreements, have contributed to their economic growth and European Integration. How did it happened, and what are the consequences of free trade agreements, under the example of Albania, it has been studied and analyzed, through data collections from different sources like the WB, IMF, National Banks, business round table discussions, etc.. Among all the free trade agreements CEFTA has shown to be the most effective. Central European Free Trade Agreement, CEFTA, since 2006, has been a tool to businesses making the rules and regulations governing trade in the European Region. It has contributed to make trade simpler and increasingly harmonized all procedures with those of the EU and the WTO （World Trade Organization）. As a conclusion, CEFTA experience has shown to have improved considerably business ability of developing European economies, to trade with the EU countries and the world. CEFTA has created an attractive market for investments while before the market in the Region was fragmented and unattractive to important investments, has promoted growth, and contributed to job creation. Albania is a recent success of it.

Advancing the Multilateral Regional Cooperation in Economy and Trade with the Scheme Reform of Zero Tariffs

China＇s tariff arrangement in the transition period after ＂entry to WTO＂ influences the process of the multilateral trade system in the world. Establishing the free trade area and customs union according to WTO/GATS 1994 article 24, or according to authorizing the clause （Enabling Clause ） to sign the regional trade agreement between developing countries or signed the protocol of economic integration taking promoting and serving the liberalization of trade as purpose according to WTO/GATS article 5, include the regional trade agreement in the multilateral trade system frame to standardize, supervise and coordinate to China, reduce trade protectionism and improve the multilateral trade system＇s influence in the world greatly. Drawing lessons from CEPA and China the system of the manoeuvre ahead of time of overall ＂entry to WTO＂ of ASEAN Free Trade Area and arrange, accelerate multilateral regional cooperation in economy and trade, zero tariff scheme reform favors route choice.

The Dos and Don’ts of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement Pose the Ghana’s Maritime Industry Vis-A-Vis Its National Industrialization Drive

The direct and indirect immensely contributions of free trade blocs/single market integration to the steadilygrowth of developed emergence and least developed economies are unmeasurable. The increasing insatiable demand and approval of the free trade model by almost all of the six continents to enhance their economic development has proved that its benefits have indeed outweighed the challenges. Therefore, this research just like the other internationally recognised literatures on this market system, intends to analysis the impacts of the important/dos, don’ts, opportunities, prospects and other important factors of the recent AU member States unanimously endorsement of AfFCTA’s implementation, will have on Ghana’s maritime industry. The possible quantitative findings in this study do uphold its immensely potential benefits impact on the African and Ghana’s maritime industry development and at the same time, indicate an irresistible gap pertaining to the downward progress of its implementation within the sector. These findings have apparently revealed that loss of revenue from scrapping off customs tariffs carries the highest percentage of all the challenges facing AfCFTA’s implementation and recommend that there must be an effective investment-oriented measures-FDI in harnessing the opportunities and prospects embedded in AfCFTA so as to accelerate Ghana’s maritime industry development in its implementation process.

Impact of Sino-US Trade Agreement on Chinese Legal System about Intellectual Property Rights

On January 15,2020,the representatives of Sino-US trade signed Phase I Economic and Trade Agreement Between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the United States of America in Washington,which symbolizes the temporary settlement of two-year Sino-US trade war in relatively peaceful method and lays a good foundation in mutual trust for subsequent Phase II negotiation.This Agreement includes eight chapters involving Sino-US economic and trade and is called the model of the international bilateral agreement by virtue of its wide field and rigorous details.The impact of clauses about intellectual property rights on China’s current legal system and the future revision direction of China’s relevant laws for conformance with the Agreement will be discussed emphatically so that the author can rapidly understand the impact and significance of Sino-US trade agreement to Chinese law.

Bridging Civilizations From Asia to Europe： The Silk Road

Throughout history, Silk Road played an important role with connecting more than 50 countries between its endpoints. Reviving this ancient trade route is a contemporary discussion among politicians. There are many projects realized and proposed for the resurgence of the modem Silk Road, including the railroad project connecting Baku, Tiflis and Kars of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey; the undersea rail tunnel under the Bosphorus strait, Marmaray; the Silk Road Economic Belt proposed by China; and the Maritime Silk Road, again proposed by China. Just like the original Silk Road, it was not only a route for caravans or trade, but it was a meeting point for cultural, religious, and philosophical exchanges that served humanity for centuries; today＇s modem Silk Road initiatives should be considered as bridges between Eastern and Western civilizations that will serve the same purpose of its ancient predecessor. The revived Silk Road will facilitate strengthening of relationships in between countries that experienced harmony in history. The railways, transportation facilities, transnational gates, energy corridors, and natural gas pipelines that constitute the Silk Road will transform the region with improving its economy and bringing peace and economic prosperity. With recent developments, it witnesses the importance of geopolitical and historical ties in establishing contemporary alliances. Although there are great expectations with the revival of the modern Silk Road, authors would like to emphasize that it should be an agreement to foster shared interests rather than the interest of bigger partners.

Possible Chinese Strategic Responses to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

Negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership （TPP） Agreement have concluded, but the TPP still must be ratified by each of the 12 member countries. China is the world＇s second largest economy and yet it has not joined the TPP. This has provoked much debate in China as to the best strategic approach to the TPP This paper analyzes China＇s possible strategy for the TPP agreement. We make three key points. First, the security of market access should be China＇s main concern in any free-trade agreement negotiations, regrettably, it is not included in TPP. The second point is that the present TPP agreement is somewhat diminished from its ambitious original claims. We suggest four strategies for China. The first is to promote the development of China＇s remaining regional and bilateral free trade agreements （FTAs）. The second is to negotiate a bilateral FTA with the United States. The third is to promote deep domestic reforms via enlarged TPP coverage. The last is negotiating entrance to the entering do not worsen. TPP as soon as possible so that terms of

GVC Evolutions: New Trends and China’s Policy Response

In today’s digital economy,new technologies such as artificial intelligence,big data,and the internet of things(IoT)have stronger influence on global value chains(GVCs).As GVCs overcome physical boundaries,the space economy is becoming a new agent of growth.Developed countries dominate the rules of regional trade agreements,leading to endogenous restructuring in GVCs.In multi-tiered GVCs,certain countries garner a large portion of value-added.With the new trend in GVCs in mind,China should consolidate its strengths in the digital economy as new growth agents replace old ones,gain a favorable position in the space economy with the Chinese space station,create a global trading network through the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI),and acquire more value-added by capitalizing on the sophisticated global value chain.

Collective Action and Networks in Civil Society： The Case of South Korea＇s Protest Movement

The Free Trade Agreement （FTA） was nearly ratified by United States and South Korea countries＇ administrations and can be described as a network of transnational trade. However, the candlelight protests have been held that network was set between the individuals of the South Korean society as a reaction against the FTA and Korean government, The network was the results of a new method of amassing power which comparing past protest in South Korea, and it was able to deal a severe blow to the ongoing FTA negotiations. In this paper, we will be using the actor-network theory （ANT） set forth by Law （1992） and Latour （2005） to explain Korean candlelight protest situations. A key claim is that ANT must range beyond studies of science and technology to other ＂social＂ subjects because it raises much broader questions about the construction of the social and nature. Therefore, this paper focused more on how the public opinion was aggregate in the social process, rather than the result. And we can see that the role of non-human actors is highly important. Through this attempt the citizen can reveal undisclosed information and get power to have communication with the government.

Exploring the Influencing Factors of FDI in China’s Internal Regions:Evidence From Taiwan

This study aims to explore the influencing factors of the location determinants of Taiwan’s foreign direct investments(FDIs)in China’s internal regions.This study proposes three models to examine the influencing factors of Taiwan’s FDIs in China by combining the location advantages of the host country,the economy and politics of the home country,and network relationship in bilateral and regional trade agreements:First,analyze the location distribution of Taiwan’s FDIs in China’s six regions;Second,analyze the location determinants of Taiwan’s main sectors’(manufacturing and service)FDIs in China;Third,analyze the location determinants of Taiwan’s high-tech industries’FDIs in China’s six regions.The estimated results show that bilateral trade agreement seems to have positive effects on Taiwan’s FDIs in China,while regional trade agreement seems to have negative effects.In Taiwan’s political form,the ruling party with characteristics of political defense against China seems to have negative effects on most of Taiwan’s industries(except manufacturing)and the overall FDIs in China.In terms of China’s relevant economic factors,the main determinants of Taiwan’s high-tech industries’FDIs in the major regions of Eastern and South Central of China are infrastructure and high-level human capital resources.China’s GDP growth and increase in unit labor cost have negative effects on FDIs in most regions of China.This implies that the advantage of low wages in China Factory may gradually decline.This study provides some references and implications for future research and policy makers for the analysis of relevant influencing factors of FDI.

The Impact of High-standard Free Trade Areas on the Diversification of China's Export Products: Expanding Market or Intensifying Competition?

In the context of China's efforts to establish a global network of free trade areas and diversify its export products, this study explores the impact of trade agreement depth on China's export diversification. Building upon a trade model with multiproduct firms, we discover that the effect of trade agreement depth on export diversification is multifaceted, depending on the relative magnitude of the “market expansion effect” and the “competition intensification effect.” Through empirical analysis of China's exports to 132 countries (or regions) from 2000 to 2015, we find that the deepening of trade agreements affected China's export diversification negatively. This negative correlation was predominantly due to the similarity in comparative advantages between China and its trade partners, leading to the “competition intensification effect” overshadowing the “market expansion effect.” We also note that “natural” agreements, when deepened, were more likely to affect China's export diversification adversely than their “non-natural” counterparts. Moreover, as export diversification increased, the marginal impact of deepening trade agreements exhibited an inverted U-shaped trajectory.

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and Trans-Pacific Partnership： Policy Options of China

As a result of deadlocked multilateral trade negotiations, many countries have embarked on the establishment of bilateral and regional trade agreements. Using the Global Trade Analysis Project database and a computable general equilibrium model, our paper focuses on the impacts of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership （TTIP） and the Trans- Pacific Partnership （TPP） on the Chinese economy under three scenarios. The results suggest that when only the TTIP is realized, Chinese economic variables are negatively affected. When both the TTIP and the TPP are realized and China is excluded, the combined damage to the Chinese economy is higher than the damage with the TTIP alone. However, the inclusion of China in the TPP has a positively effect on economic variables in China. This indicates that the impacts of China ＇s participation in the TPP compensate for the negative impacts of the TTIP. Therefore, China should consider being part of the TPP to offset the negative impacts of the TTIP.

Reforming the World Trade Organization: Practitioner Perspectives from China, the EU, and the US

China,the European Union,and the United States are the world s largest traders.They have a big stake in a multilateral system of rules to manage the inevitable frictions among interdependent economies organized on different principles.This paper discusses elements of the WTO reform agenda through the lens of positions taken by these three WTO members,identifying the extent of alignment on key subjects,including transparency,dispute settlement,and plurilateral negotiations.We draw on findings of a recent research project on WTO reform and use responses to an expert survey to assess the prospects for actions that all three trade powers might support.Our premise is that reforming WTO is a necessary condition for the organization to be a more salient forum for the three large economies to address trade tensions,and that agreement among these three trade powers^in turn,is necessary to resolve the problems of the WTO.

Short-Term and Long-Term Margins of International Trade： Evidence from the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement

We investigate the impact of the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement （CCFTA） on Canadian exports to Chile, particularly the dynamic effects of the agree- ment on extensive and intensive margins of trade. Consistent with the literature, we find that the extensive margin effects occurred later than the intensive margin effects and became more prominent in the long-term. Surprisingly, the intensive margin ef- fects died off in the long-term. A theoretical model is constructed to show that our results can arise in a standard setting of intra-industry trade.

US Presidential Election 2008:Policy Implications for US-China Trade and Investment

The next US president will be elected in November 2008. Since the relative stabilization of war in Iraq, the economy has become the national priority of the 2008 US election. In their campaign efforts, the Democrats have enjoyed greater momentum than the Republicans, in terms of polls, fund-raising and corporate support. After the Bush era, the next president will seek to restore America＇s leadership and to engage in multilateralism. Since the 1990s, China has been the most rapidly-growing US export destination. In terms of US-Shinese trade and investment, the next president, ira Democrat, will, among other issues, review trade agreements and has pledged to co-sponsor legislation that would allow US companies to seek anti-dumping duties on Chinese imports based on the perceived undervaluation of the Chinese currency. If a Republican, the next president will support global integration and oppose protectionist measures. The Democratic Congress is likely to oppose Republican policies in general and free trade policies in particular. Both scenarios imply increasing pressure on US-Chinese trade and investment relationships. Because these two nations now account for almost half of global growth, the state of the futureUS-Chinese bilateral relationship has worldwide implications.

Why Chinese Exports Face So Many Trade Remedy Actions： An Empirical Study Based on Multi-country and Multi-industry Data

This paper offers a comprehensive analysis of the reasons for the large number of trade remedy actions taken against China. Using a multi-country and multi-industry dataset, the present paper shows that the macroeconomic situation of China＇s partners has a great influence on the probability of trade frictions arising with China. Moreover, the more powerful the industry is, the more likely it is to take trade remedy actions against China. The empirical results reveal that China has been hurt under the operating mechanism of the WTO, and the number of free trade agreements is negatively related to the initiation and approval of trade remedy actions. Basically, the determinants for countervailing and double remedy measures are identical, while they are different from determinants of antidumping measures. Accordingly, strengthening communication with trade partners will alleviate friction between China and its trade partners. Meanwhile, making use of foreign lobbies power, actively integrating into the international trading system and participating in regional trade agreements are effective ways for China to deal with the ＂new normal＂ of trade frictions.