Free Trade And The Power Asymmetry Between The United States And Canada

Seminar paper from the year 2004 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 2,0, Free University of Berlin (John-F.-Kennedy-Institut für Nordamerikastudien), course: Proseminar "Politics in North America: A Comparative Perspective", language: English, abstract: This paper will address the question what strategic goals stood behind the promotion and implementation of free trade between the United States and Canada. The purpose is to evaluate the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in respect to the objectives of both parties that were not commonly shared in the beginning. It is about the consequences of power imbalance for regional free trade and not about the social costs that are intensively discussed and certainly heavily felt in both countries. Since the view of a power asymmetry that exists between the two countries should be rather uncontested, the central idea of the following text is to examine in detail at which points this has shaped the content of the two agreements. This approach is inspired by the broader question, whose interests free trade serves in general. An important rhetoric strategy of promoters of the neo-liberal agenda is to suggest that the free play of market forces encouraged by such agreements gives all participants the same fair opportunities to engage in trade without intervention from governments. Consequently, all members of the distinct community will benefit from freer trade. For it is rather clear that power and national interests always play a role in politics - in this case in the processes leading to free trade agreements - it shall be demonstrated how this works in particular.

This study is the first major attempt to estimate what would happen in Canada if all trade restrictions between that country and the United States were removed. Refuting a number of generally held assumptions, the authors' findings indicate that Canadian industries would benefit substantially, provided that they seized the opportunities to reorganize for the large North American market. The authors then explore resulting general equilibrium pressures on wages and exchange and continue with an analysis of the historical effects of protection on Canada.

Seminar paper from the year 2004 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 2,0, Free University of Berlin (John-F.-Kennedy-Institut für Nordamerikastudien), course: Proseminar „Politics in North America: A Comparative Perspective“, language: English, abstract: This paper will address the question what strategic goals stood behind the promotion and implementation of free trade between the United States and Canada. The purpose is to evaluate the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in respect to the objectives of both parties that were not commonly shared in the beginning. It is about the consequences of power imbalance for regional free trade and not about the social costs that are intensively discussed and certainly heavily felt in both countries. Since the view of a power asymmetry that exists between the two countries should be rather uncontested, the central idea of the following text is to examine in detail at which points this has shaped the content of the two agreements. This approach is inspired by the broader question, whose interests free trade serves in general. An important rhetoric strategy of promoters of the neo-liberal agenda is to suggest that the free play of market forces encouraged by such agreements gives all participants the same fair opportunities to engage in trade without intervention from governments. Consequently, all members of the distinct community will benefit from freer trade. For it is rather clear that power and national interests always play a role in politics – in this case in the processes leading to free trade agreements – it shall be demonstrated how this works in particular.

This volume provides a comprehensive analysis of the economic, social, cultural and political dimensions of the evolving trilateral relationship among the three countries of North America. Contributors address such topics as energy, the environment, trade, labour, the maquiladora industrial sector of Mexico, the Mexican auto industry, and Canada - U.S. cultural relations.While other publications have focused on U.S. issues, this one emphasizes Canada and Mexico, yet adds significantly to our understanding of the place of the United States in this evolving trilateral relationship.

This flagship publication examines different aspects of the nature and role of international trade in the era of hyperglobalization and considers related policy challenges that will need to be addressed if trade is to contribute to a more stable and inclusive global economic order. Research provides authoritative data and analysis on trade, investment, finance and technology. UNCTAD offers solutions to the major challenges facing developing countries, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable nations. Beyond tailored analysis and policy recommendations, UNCTAD research also generates global standards that govern responsible sovereign lending and borrowing, investment, entrepreneurship, competition and consumer protection and trade rules.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.