An Economic Theory of GATT

Bagwell, Kyle; Staiger, Robert W.

doi:10.3386/w6049

Cited by 347 publications

(660 citation statements)

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“…Reciprocity and conditionality are central to theoretical studies on trade agreements (Bagwell and Staiger, 1999;2011). Bagwell and Staiger (2011) point out that developing countries can only benefits from trade agreements if they do not simply "free ride" on reciprocal MFN concessions between developed countries, but liberalize in turn.…”

Section: Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries in the WTO

Conconi

Perroni

2015

World Trade Review

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In this paper, we examine the theoretical rationale for WTO rules on the special and differential treatment (SDT) of developing countries. We describe a model of bilateral trade between a small country and a large trading partner, in which the small country suffers from a domestic commitment problem in trade policy. This problem arises because investors in the import-competing sector lobby the government to enact and maintain protectionist policies. We show that a reciprocal trade agreement, in which the large country lowers its tariffs conditionally on the small country doing the same, creates a "carrot and stick" mechanisms that helps the small country to overcome its commitment problem. If capacity in the import-competing sector can only be reduced gradually, the agreement may need to allow the small country to delay the implementation of its trade liberalization commitments, in line with SDT provisions in the WTO. Our analysis suggests that, if reconciled with the principle of reciprocity, SDT can help developing countries to liberalize and improve their trading prospects.JEL classifications: D72, D78, F13.

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Section: Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries in the WTO

Conconi

Perroni

2015

World Trade Review

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“…The dispute settlement system forms the central mechanism to enforce international trade law and embodies a high level of legalization in comparison with other international institutions. It has attracted wide attention from scholars in political science, economics, and law (e.g., Bagwell and Staiger 1999;Bown 2004b;Busch 2000;Guzman and Simmons 2002;Jackson 1997;Maggi 1999;Reinhardt 2001;Rosendorff 2005). While research has found no evidence of any bias in rulings against developing countries (Busch and Reinhardt 2003;Moon 2006), weak enforcement could arise through an earlier selection effect if developing countries do not file complaints to challenge violations.…”

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confidence: 99%

Who Files? Developing Country Participation in GATT/WTO Adjudication

Davis

Bermeo

2009

The Journal of Politics

195

106

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“…Like Bagwell and Staiger (1999) and (2001), we investigate the ef…ciency rationale behind WTO's principles. However, they emphasize reciprocity in market access in a perfectly competitive economy where externalities between countries are limited to world price e¤ects.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparative institutional analysis of agreements on product standards

Costinot

2008

Journal of International Economics

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The WTO and the EU have chosen two di¤erent agreements on product standards. While the WTO's approach is primarily based on a "National Treatment" (NT) principle, the EU's approach crucially relies on a principle of "Mutual Recognition" (MR). This paper o¤ers a …rst look at the comparative performance of these two principles. We show that standards are imposed for levels of externalities that are too low under NT and too high under MR. This suggests that NT should be preferred to MR when the amount of trade in goods characterized by high levels of externalities is large.

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An Economic Theory of GATT

Cited by 347 publications

References 0 publications

Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries in the WTO

Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries in the WTO

Who Files? Developing Country Participation in GATT/WTO Adjudication

A comparative institutional analysis of agreements on product standards

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