An Anti-Dumping Case on Toilet Paper
An opportunity for some good puns, as you can probably imagine, courtesy of the Sydney Morning Herald.
More on Carbon Taxes
Somewhat related to yesterday's post on using consumption taxes to fight carbon emissions, Congressman Bob Inglis and economist Arthur Laffer argue in the NY Times for a carbon tax that is offset by income tax cuts. In doing so, they say:
The United States can’t solve climate
Trade and Carbon Emissions: Consumption versus Production Models
How can we effectively fight carbon emissions, while at the same time limiting trade conflicts that result from such measures? Geoff Carmody explains that the answer is to focus on consumption rather than production:
But an emissions production model only works if all nations sign on at the same time.
Investment Protectionism
Claude Barfield worries about recent actions taken to restrict foreign investment:
There is, however, one ominous sign of protectionism in an area that is mostly outside the scope of WTO trade rules: foreign direct investment (FDI). The leading advocate of investment protectionism is French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has proposed
Rethinking WTO subsidy rules: Should the SCM have an escape clause?
Call
it the “subsidy war” or “domestic policy space”, as you wish. The world has
dramatically changed over the last three months: governments from the United
States to just about every other country have rushed to rescue their economies
by pumping trillions of dollars into their financial and manufacturing sectors.
Trade in Everything: Christmas Products
From Jonathan Dingel:
The US nominal average ad valorem tariff rate for (12 Days of) Christmas this year, which I calculated using the handy Harmonized (Tariff) Christmas schedule, is only 1.9%. I assume that Santa has MFN status.
Drums 4.8%
Pipes 0%
Milking machines 0%
Swans 1.8%
The Great Subsidy War is Coming?
On Dec 22nd, China requested the establishment of the panel in the case against US AD & CVD duties on certain products (steel pipe, tires, etc.). This is the third case China has brought against the US and the 2nd case China brought against US CVD practices. There are several
Krugman on Reducing the Trade Deficit
Paul Krugman writes:
A more plausible route to sustained recovery would be a drastic reduction in the U.S. trade deficit, which soared at the same time the housing bubble was inflating. By selling more to other countries and spending more of our own income on U.S.-produced goods,
Are Tariffs High Enough to Worry About?
In Foreign Affairs, Aaditya Mattoo and Arvind Subramanian argue:
But the issues now at stake in Doha are marginal, and, more important, Doha distracts attention from other matters of greater significance, such as the consequences for trade from misaligned exchange rates and environmental protection.
One of the points -- although in
Fuel and Energy Conference
Assuming the new Obama administration is going to take some action to fight climate change, how will this be done in accordance with trade rules? This is one of the issues to be addressed at he conference on "Fuel Rules - Energy, Emissions and the World Trade Organization," February