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"This paper briefly reviews new indices of trade restrictiveness and trade facilitation that have been developed at the World Bank. The paper also compares the trade impact of different types of trade restrictions applied at the border with the effects of domestic policies that affect trade costs. Based on a gravity regression framework, the analysis suggests that tariffs and non-tariff measures continue to be a significant source of trade restrictiveness for low-income countries despite preferential access programs. This is because the value of trade preferences is quite limited: a new measure of the relative preference margin developed in the paper reveals that this is very low for most country-pairs. Most countries with very good (duty-free) access to a market generally have competitors that have the same degree of access. The empirical analysis suggests that measures to improve logistics performance and facilitate trade are likely to have the greatest positive effects in expanding developing country trade, increasing the trade impacts of lowering remaining border barriers by a factor of two or more. "--World Bank web site

"This book examines the state of China's trade agreements with various regions of the world and the strategy and rationale behind them. In its campaign to sign free trade agreements, China is slowly moving from small, developing countries to more advanced economies. However, China's approach to preferential trade is inconsistent and not fully understood. This book outlines China's strategy and key factors influencing its policy in the pursuit of free trade agreements and offers considerations for the U.S. government. Moreover, the book provides an overview of U.S.-China commercial relations, including major trade disputes, and examines China's recent emergence as a major agricultural importer and its implications for global markets"--Preface

Cover -- Table of Contents -- Abstract -- I. Introduction -- II. Model, Data and Calibration -- A. A Multi-sector Trade Model -- B. Construction of Main Database -- C. Calibration of Elasticities of Substitution -- III. Scenarios and Results -- A. Scenario Definition -- B. Effects on the U.S -- C. Impact and Spillovers to Other Countries -- IV. The Role of the Elasticity of Substitution Between Domestic and Foreign Goods -- V. Concluding Remarks -- Appendix -- A. Implementing export tariffs as part of the U.S.-China transactional deal -- References.

Intro -- U.S. FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS AND TRADE POLICY -- U.S. FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS AND TRADE POLICY -- CONTENTS -- PREFACE -- Chapter 1 FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS: IMPACT ON U.S. TRADE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR U.S. TRADE POLICY -- SUMMARY -- WHAT ARE FREE TRADE AREAS? -- WHY COUNTRIES FORM FTAS -- FTAS IN THE CONTEXT OF U.S. TRADE POLICY -- OBAMA ADMINISTRATION POLICY AND RECENT DEVELOPMENTS -- ECONOMIC IMPACT OF FTAS -- FTAS AND THE WTO -- THE DEBATE OVER FTAS -- CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR CONGRESS -- End Notes -- Chapter 2 THE FUTURE OF U.S. TRADE POLICY: AN ANALYSIS OF ISSUES AND OPTIONS FOR THE 111TH CONGRESS -- SUMMARY -- THE CURRENT ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL CLIMATE FOR TRADE POLICY -- Political Factors -- Public Opinion -- Congressional Perspective -- Presidential Perspective -- Executive-Legislative Partnership/Tension -- Economic Factors -- Global Economic Downturn -- Emergence of Developing Countries -- Economic Integration and Global Production Networks -- Preferential Trade Arrangements -- Limitations on Trade Policymaking -- "Behind the Border" Trade Barriers -- Trade Deficits -- TRADE ISSUES -- Pending FTAs and FTA Negotiations -- The WTO and the DDA -- Renewal of Trade Promotion Authority -- Reauthorization and Review of Trade Preference Programs -- Trade Enforcement -- Foreign Direct Investment: Bilateral Investment Treaties and FTA Investment Chapters -- THE DEBATE OVER U.S. TRADE POLICY: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? -- "Trade Liberalizers" -- "Fair Traders" -- "Trade Skeptics" -- THE DIRECTION OF FOREIGN TRADE POLICY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS -- End Notes -- Chapter 3 THE PROPOSED U.S.-PANAMA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT -- SUMMARY -- PANAMA'S CANAL AND ECONOMIC RELATIONS WITH THE UNITED STATES -- Early U.S.-Panama Economic Relations -- The Canal and U.S. Trade Policy -- PANAMANIAN TRADE RELATIONS

The growth of digital trade is dependant upon greater interconnectivity across borders. Several countries strive to achieve such interconnectivity and integration in digital trade through international trade agreements. Digital trade integration is a complex, multidimensional process that integrates regulatory structures/policy designs, digital technologies and business processes along the entire global/regional digital value chain. This paper sets out five foundational elements of digital trade integration: reducing digital trade barriers; digital trade facilitation; digital trade regulatory frameworks and digital trust policies; digital development and inclusion; and institutional coordination. It then examines the extent to which Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) can or do contribute to digital integration. Some recent PTAs contain ambitious provisions to reduce regulatory barriers in digital trade and facilitate cross-border data flows. However, most PTAs fail to holistically support the five pillars of digital trade integration, and are particularly deficient in supporting digital development and inclusion, incorporating adequate digital trade facilitation measures, and facilitating meaningful international regulatory cooperation. This paper provides various policy recommendations to address such deficiencies. This paper also contains a case study of digital trade integration in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). It argues that the ASEAN framework currently functions as a weak form of digital trade integration, focusing mainly on political goodwill and high-level cooperation. Although the ASEAN Members are committed to enhancing regulatory cooperation and strengthening their institutions on electronic commerce, the development asymmetry coupled with the conflicting policy preferences of ASEAN Members remains a key obstacle.