Liberal Protectionism

What does organized trade portend for the future of the post-World War II trading order? Are we seeing a transition from liberalism to protectionism? These questions are central to Vinod K. Aggarwal's penetrating analysis of conflict and cooperation in trade among developed and less developed countries. In his examination of the evolution of organized trade, Aggarwal specifically analyses international regimes in textile and apparel trade. The author uses an original theoretical approach to investigate international regimes. Why are regimes desirable? Aggarwal shows how such accords can protect broader arrangements, allow countries to control one another's behavior, and minimize information and organization costs in negotiations. Several factors account for the form of regimes. The strength of regimes is enhanced by an asymmetry of international power. A hegemon is more willing and able to maintain a regime. Both the nature and scope of regimes are determined by the relative degree of trade competition and cognitive consensus among actors. As trade competition increases, and actors decide to link related issues, regimes become more protectionist in their goals and wider in their coverage. Aggarwal's theory successfully accounts for the transformation of international regimes in textile trade, demonstrating the importance of systematically incorporating international level factors into our theories. His empirical work is based on extensive archival research and interviews with key negotiators. Aggarwal concludes that the pattern of international cooperation which evolved in textile trade provides a portrait of the future for trade in other industrial sectors. He finds the trend of arrangements in textile trade disturbing and argues that organized trade will not prevent--and may in fact promote a slide from liberalism to protectionism. Regimes originally developed to counter protectionism may evolve into systems of organized protection that encourage neither efficiency nor equity. A lucid analysis of recent historical developments in textile trade, this study sheds light on the movement toward increasing protection in other sectors of trade as well. It is a significant work that will prove valuable to those who study international trade and regimes. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1986.

In an international political economy characterised both by constancy and change, this study, first published in 1996, links together one seemingly incongruous continuity in international trade relations with an increasingly dramatic development in the economies of industrial countries. On the one hand, industrialised countries have become progressively dependent upon one another. On the other hand, the liberal international trade regime has yet to falter. These two points are tied together by seeking to explain the maintenance of liberal trade relations in terms of the mutual economic dependence of industrial countries. In particular, the study examines what may be a fundamental constraint on trade protectionism today: the reliance of industrialised countries on external trade relations, and especially on markets within the industrial world.

"Through a combination of text, quotations, cartoons, tables, charts, and graphs, Bhagwati ... looks at the forces for and against protection."--Jacket.

Chorev focuses on trade liberalization in the United States from the 1930s to the present as she explores the political origins of today's global economy.

This volume addresses highly topical issues at a crucial time in international economic relations. The world has never been closer to dismantling the liberal multilateral trading system which has been painstakingly established and successfully operated since the Second World War. In this volume many of the world's most distinguished economists examine the movement toward protectionism, bilateralism, and regionalism, and its causes, effects, and possible solutions. The contributors are theorists, researchers, and advisors to governments and international organizations who are at the forefront of trade theory, policy, and practice, and whose analyses have a real impact on international trade. By collecting together these analyses in a single volume, this book provides a unique survey for students and scholars of economics, and all those concerned with trade theory and policy in business and government.

Given the widely-accepted premise that free trade is the best means of maximising overall societal welfare, why has it proven so difficult to achieve in certain industries? This book tackles arguably the most perennial and deep-rooted of all questions in political economy, and questions the incumbent orthodox liberal theories of collective action. Using a historical institutionalist framework to explore and explain the political economy of trade protectionism and liberalization, this book is based on detailed case studies of the textiles and clothing sector in the EU, United States, China, Caribbean Basin and sub-Saharan Africa. From this, the book expands to discuss the origins of trade protectionism and examine the wider political effects of liberalization, offering an explanation of why a successful conclusion to the WTO ‘Doha’ round has proven to be so elusive. The book argues that the regulation of global trade - and the economic consequences that this has for both developed and developing countries - has been the result of the particular way in which trade preferences are mediated through political institutions. The Global Political Economy of Trade Protectionism and Liberalization will be of interest to those studying and researching international and comparative political economy, developing area studies, economics, law and geography.