With attempts at international trade agreements mostly stuck since the conclusion of the Uruguay Round in 1994, the emphasis of negotiators has mostly switched to bilateral and regional agreements. This work outlines the benefits and likely future of two such arrangements, while making use of both a new database and analytic methods that incorporate the "extensive margin." Six appendixes provide additional data, along with an explanation of the computable general equilibrium model. A useful two page glossary also appears before the index. The authors, coming with both extensive academic experience and from a high level position at the China Investment Corporation, present a solid analysis accompanied by a number of tables, figures and boxes. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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"While global trade negotiations remain stalled, two tracks of trade negotiations in the Asia-Pacific--the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and a parallel Asian track--could generate momentum for renewed liberalization and provide pathways to region-wide free trade. We estimate that world income would rise by $295 billion per year on the TPP track, by $766 billion if both tracks are successful, and by $1.9 trillion if the tracks ultimately combine to yield region-wide free trade. The tracks are competitive initially but their strategic implications appear to be constructive: they generate incentives for enlargement and mutual progress and, over time, for region-wide consolidation. The "21st century" template of the TPP would be especially productive because it is likely to offer opportunities for the leading sectors of both emerging-market and advanced economies. An ambitious TPP template would generate greater gains from integration than less demanding alternatives, but it will be harder to sell to China and other key regional partners as the TPP evolves toward wider agreements. The crucial importance of Asia-Pacific integration argues for an early conclusion of the TPP negotiations, but without jeopardizing the prospects for region-wide or even global agreements based on it in the future"--Provided by publisher.
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