Faced with increased levels of international competition and mounting budget deficits some developed, Western economies have responded by introducing trade restrictions. This book uses a comparative analysis of eight leading industrial nations (including Japan, the United States, West Germany and Britain) to demonstrate that such policies are mistaken. Alternatives to trade restrictions, including subsidies for industries and labour-market policy instruments are also shown to have their drawbacks, and the book emphasises the need for countries to find and exploit policies which fulfil their...

Thist text introduces the rules and institutions that govern international trade. The authors draw their analysis on aspects of the subject from classic and contemporary literature on trade and political economy. This second edition has been fully up-dated to take account of the most recent developments of the late 1990s in International Trade. New issues covered include: trade and competition; trade and labour rights; the Multilateral Agreement on Investment; the Basic Telecoms and Financial Services WTO Agreements; and an analysis of the first three years of WTO dispute rulings, including...