The Genesis of the GATT

Abstract

This book is part of a wider project on the economic logic behind the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). This volume asks: What does the historical record indicate about the aims and objectives of the framers of the GATT? Where did the provisions of the GATT come from and how did they evolve through various international meetings and drafts? To what extent does the historical record provide support for one or more of the economic rationales for the GATT? This book examines the motivations and contributions of the two main framers of the GATT, the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as the smaller role of other countries. The framers desired a commercial agreement on trade practices as well as negotiated reductions in trade barriers. Both were sought as a way to expand international trade to promote world prosperity, restrict the use of discriminatory policies to reduce conflict over trade, and thereby establish economic foundations for maintaining world peace.

Is the GATT/WTO's Article XXIV bad?

“…Indeed, most previous research on 1 Article XXIV was originally formulated as part of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), and has now been formally adopted into the Charter of the WTO (GATT 1994). The historical events through which Article XXIV came into being are discussed by Snape (1993) and Irwin et al (2008). Its implementation in practice is documented by McMillan (1993).…”

The Openness of National Economies: The World and Russia

“…There is broad agreement among historians that the recession of 1929 was transformed into the Great Depression mainly because of a series of monetary and fiscal policy blunders. These financial mistakes were exacerbated by the spread of "beggar-thy-neighbour" 6 trade strategies, as countries tried to insulate themselves from shrinking demand and growing unemployment by raising import barriers and carving out preferential export markets, resulting in the collapse of international trade and the rise of trade frictions (Irwin et al, 2008).…”

Support for international trade law: The US and the EU compared

“…Following World War II, the US was the prime designer of the multilateral trading system 10 characterized by a set of rules that restrict arbitrary forms of discrimination and assist in gradually opening markets. It also allowed its own behavior to be restricted to a certain degree.…”