Challenges to the Multilateral Trading System: World Trade Organization, Generalized System of Preferences, and Regional Trade Agreements

By Marco Wagner

The study investigates the efficiency of trade liberalization in the GATT/WTO framework and analyzes the relationship between GATT/WTO and related international institutions such as the Generalized System of Preferences and regional trade agreements. While the analyses are also based on theoretical models, the workhorse of the study is the well-known gravity model framework in conjunction with vector auto-regressive analysis. Generally, the various analyses highlight the role of GATT/WTO as an important player in global trade: GATT/WTO has a substantial promoting effect on international trade; trade promotion of developing countries should best be served by GATT/WTO rather than by preferential schemes under the Generalized System of Preferences; GATT/WTO is not undermined by the proliferation of regional trade agreements rather regional trade agreements stimulate multilateral trade liberalization under GATT/WTO.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 3832956808
• ISBN13: 9783832956806
• Release Date: June 2010
• Publisher: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft
• Length: 136 Pages