International Economic Law and Policy Blog

Sign in Subscribe

Simon Lester

Trade Liberalization that Dani Rodrik Can Get Behind

I am often left wondering what Dani Rodrik thinks of trade. I try to parse his various criticisms of the current trade regime, but I still can't figure out where exactly he stands on core issues such as, "Is protectionism a good policy?" Most likely, his

Metric Labeling as a Trade Barrier

The Commerce Department announces a victory with regard to EU metric labeling: The Commerce Department today announced the successful culmination of its efforts to ensure extension of both non-metric and metric labeling provisions on product packaging for U.S. businesses exporting to the European Union—saving U.S. firms

It's World Trade Week

Apparently, May 17-23 is "World Trade Week." See the White House press release here, which concludes: NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do

The Seals Dispute: The Economist Offers Some Arguments

In this week's issue, the Economist weighs in on the EU's decision to ban most seal products. They make the point that if the EU wanted to promote animal welfare, they had other avenues, closer to home, to do so: ROUGHLY handled, and incompetently stunned, terrified

The Latest on Currency Disputes

I'm going to go out on (somewhat of) a limb, and predict that this legislation, or something like it, will pass and result in a major trade dispute in the near future: US lawmakers on Wednesday unveiled a plan to retaliate against countries, like China, that allegedly manipulate

Is the Intel Verdict Protectionist?

Some people say yes: American technology advocates and legal experts have roundly condemned the EU's decision to fine Intel nearly a billion pounds for breaking anti-trust laws. Grant Aldonas, Senior Advisor at the bipartisan Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), says, "This is a potentially

"U.S. trade chief wows partners, substance awaited"

That's how Reuters describes USTR Ron Kirk's Geneva trip. More here.

Interpreting International Law

On SSRN, Professor Michael Paulsen has posted "The Constitutional Power to Interpret International Law." An extract from the paper: What, then, of international bodies’ interpretations of international law, including international treaties to which the United States is party—such as the U.N. Charter, the Geneva Conventions, and

Is the Beef Hormones Dispute Settled?

My reading of the terms of the "provisional" agreement signed last week between the U.S. and EU on the WTO beef hormones dispute was that some small steps had been taken, but there was still a lot of work to be done. In particular, the key issue

The Impact of Buy America

Not so good for at least one Canadian company: A Toronto company that has been exporting pipe to the United States market for 60 years recently landed a contract to supply plastic piping for a new health-care centre at the Camp Pendleton Marine base in California. But the piping