The data chase : what's out there on trade costs and nontariff barriers ?

Trade costs and nontariff barriers are at the forefront of discussions on competitiveness and expanding trade opportunities for developing countries. This paper provides a summary overview of data and indicators relevant to these issues and has been informed by work underway at the World Bank on trade facilitation over the past several years to catalogue data sets and indicators. Although there has been progress in expanding data sets and developing policy-relevant indicators on trade costs and barriers, much more is needed. In order to assess progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals, evaluating the impact of development projects, and whether meeting Aid for Trade goals will be met, for example, a dedicated and expansive new effort to collect and assess data is needed. This paper attempts to highlight gaps in data on trade costs and provides insight into the type of new data that might be developed in the future.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Law,Free Trade,Trade Policy

The Development Impact of Information Technology in Trade Facilitation

The main purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview and context of the country studies on Information Technology (IT) for Trade Facilitation (TF) in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).Impact of Information Techonology, Trade Facilitation, SMEs

The Analysis on Multimodal Transport Mode of Cross-border E-commerce with \u27the Belt and Road\u27 Strategy Based on Personalized Recommendation

With the further advance of \u27the Belt and Road\u27 strategy , China\u27s cross-border E-commerce has obtained powerful policy support and wide world market. But from the view of users\u27 coverage and total import and export of the trade along \u27the Belt and Road\u27 , China\u27s cross-border E-commerce still has great potential for development, while the high transportation cost is the main resistance in business. Therefore, based on the theory of customer personalized recommendation, combining with the successful cases of personalized services recommendation system from Jingdong and eBay, this article puts forward the multimodal transport service mode of China\u27s cross-border logistics enterprises so as to customize the optimized logistics service system for e-commerce and achieve a win-win situation for customers and enterprises

Outsourcing and Insourcing Jobs in the U.S. Economy: Evidence Based on Foreign Investment Data

The impact of foreign direct investment on U.S. employment continues to attract national attention. While local communities compete with one another for investment projects, many of the residents of those communities fear losing their jobs as U.S. companies seek out foreign locations and foreign workers to perform work that traditionally has been done in the United States, generally referred to as outsourcing. Some observers suggest that current U.S. experiences with outsourcing are different from those that have preceded them and that this merits legislative actions by Congress to blunt the economic impact of these activities. Other observers argue that investing abroad by U.S. multinational companies impedes the growth of new jobs in the economy and thwarts the nation’s investments in high technology sectors. Some opponents also argue that mid-career workers who lose good-paying manufacturing and service-sector jobs likely will never recover their standard of living. Economists and others generally argue that free and unimpeded international flows of capital ultimately have a positive impact on both domestic and foreign economies. Direct investment is unique among international capital flows because it adds permanently to the capital stock and skill set of a nation, but it also challenges the general theory of capital flows because of the presence of strong cross-border and intra-industry investment. Supporters contend that to the extent that foreign investment shifts jobs abroad, it is a minor component of the overall economic picture and that it is offset somewhat by the investment of foreign firms in the U.S. economy (referred to as insourcing), which supports existing jobs and creates new jobs in the economy. Broad, comprehensive data on U.S. multinational companies generally lag behind current events by two years and were not developed to address the issue of jobs outsourcing. Many economists argue, however, that there is little evidence to date to support the notion that the overseas investment activities of U.S. multinational companies play a significant role in the rate at which jobs are created in the U.S. economy. Instead, they argue that the source of job creation in the economy is rooted in the combination of macroeconomic policies the nation has chosen, the rate of productivity growth, and the availability of resources. This report addresses these issues by analyzing the extent of direct investment into and out of the economy, the role such investment plays in U.S. trade, jobs, and production, and the relationship between direct investment and the broader economic changes that are occurring in the U.S. economy

The Cross-border Electricity Business Cloud Services Platform Based On A Combination Of Cloud Computing Services Composition

Nowadays cloud computing industry has turned to the stage of small-scale application from the stage of import and preparation, so business model has become an integral part in cloud computing. According to the existing problem of commercial operation in cloud computing, by analyzing and forecasting the service composition effects, this paper proposes the theoretical thought of synthetic prediction of risk management for cloud computing services composition systems, gives a synthetic prediction model of services composition, namely multi-layer recurrent model, and analyzes it properties. Then based on multi-layer recurrent model, the construction and application prospect of the cloud service platform based on cloud computing service portfolio is discussed

Prospects for IT-Enabled Services Under a Indo-US FTA

ITES/BPO services is an important and growing component of Indias trade in services with the US. While the Indian government has implemented several measures to support the growth of this sector, Indian companies face various barriers in the US market such as anti-outsourcing regulations, restrictive visa/work permit regime and concerns relating to protection of sensitive data. Multilateral negotiations would have been the best route to address many of these barriers, but with the recent suspension of the Doha Round of talks, it has become important for countries to evaluate alternative routes such as bilateral Free Trade Agreements. In fact, after the suspension of the multilateral negotiations, both India and the US have refocused on bilateral agreements. In this context, this study discusses the current and potential trade between India and the US in ITES/BPO services, identifies barriers to trade and explores how an FTA can enhance bilateral trade in this sector. The study shows that the US-FTAs have achieved a higher level of liberalization than in the WTO. It suggests various negotiating strategies for India such as a negative list approach, signing mutual recognition agreements in key professional services, asking for a H1B1 type of visa, pushing for removal of domestic regulation-related barriers, among others which would enhance market access for Indian companies in the US. It also points out that Indo-US collaborations for data protection, skill development and raising awareness of the advantages of outsourcing in the US would be mutually beneficial. The study discusses regulatory and other reforms which will improve the productivity, efficiency and global competitiveness of this sector and enable the country to gain from the FTA.Indo-US FTA, GATS, bilateral agreements, Business Process Outsourcing, IT-enabled services

Key issues in trade facilitation : summary of World Bank/European Union workshops in Dhaka and Shanghai in 2004

Trade facilitation is the ability of countries to deliver goods and services on time at the lowest possible cost. It has emerged as an important issue in unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral trade liberalization. Most countries have embarked on heroic reforms aimed at reducing transaction costs of trade. Thus, among the four new Singapore issues, there was least resistance from World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries to include trade facilitation in the Doha Round discussions. However, all countries are not equally placed in initiating reforms in the complex areas of customs procedures, transport and port logistics, harmonization of standards, and simplification of procedures. Trade facilitation reforms require a large volume of technical assistance for national capacity building. To facilitate what these reforms entail and what can be learned from cross-country experiences, the EU and the World Bank organized two workshops in Dhaka (South Asian countries) and Shanghai (East Asian countries) in 2004. Jointly they succeeded in bringing together renowned experts from multilateral organizations, selected bilateral donor community, the private sector, ex civil servants, and scholars. The participants were largely drawn from the relevant government departments and chambers of commerce and industry. This paper summarizes the main presentations in the workshops. It also indicates the areas that need more focus in future events. The paper should serve as a reference document for national policymakers and for future seminars and workshops on trade facilitation. It has also linked the presentations to the ongoing research work on trade facilitation.Common Carriers Industry,Transport and Trade Logistics,Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Policy

While Doha Sleeps: Securing Economic Growth through Trade Facilitation

Improving the international trading system does not require new, comprehensive multilateral agreements. Countries can derive large gains from the trading system by engaging in reforms often referred to as trade facilitation. In broad terms, trade facilitation includes reforms aimed at improving the chain of administrative and physical procedures involved in the transport of goods and services across international borders. Countries with inadequate trade infrastructure, burdensome administrative processes, or limited competition in trade logistics services are less capable of benefiting from the opportunities of expanding global trade. Companies interested in investing, buying, or selling in local markets are less likely to bother if there are too many frictions related to document processing or cargo inspection at customs, antiquated port facilities, logistics bottlenecks, or limited reliability of freight or trade-financing services. According to recent studies from the World Bank and other international economic institutions, trade facilitation reforms could do more to increase global trade flows than further reductions in tariff rates. For many developing countries -- particularly those that receive preferential tariff treatment from rich countries -- reducing transportation and logistics-related costs through trade facilitation reforms would be much more beneficial than further tariff cuts. But trade facilitation does not only offer promise to developing countries. All countries can benefit by removing sources of friction in their supply chains. The post-9/11 focus on minimizing the risk of terrorists exploiting porous international supply chains to sneak weapons of mass destruction into U.S. cities -- obviously a vital objective -- could hamper the capacity of Americanbased companies to attract investment and compete for markets. Likewise, U.S. prohibitions against foreign competition in transportation services and the political antipathy toward foreign investment in U.S. port operations raise the costs of doing business and increase the scope for trade facilitation in the United States

The Business Talents Cultivation of Cross-border E-commerce under “the Belt and Road Initiative”

Along with “the Belt and Road Initiative”, China’s cross-border e-commerce has been developed rapidly, which will certainly bring new challenges for talents cultivation in the Higher Education. The paper analyzes the new requirements for business talents under cross-border e-commerce. And then a cultivation system was proposed by examining the five major programs in our university. The cultivation objectives, the curriculum and the practical module are elaborated. Finally, some suggestions on the implementation of this cultivation system are put forward

Studies in Trade and Investment: The Development Impact of Information Technology in Trade Facilitation

It is important to lay out a framework for understanding how trade facilitation (TF) affects the movement of goods, and where information (IT) fits in. This relationship, in turn, sets the stage for locating small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in international transactions. There is an increasing amount of substantial literature on TF and equally wide knowledge of IT. While it is not the intent of this chapter to survey these materials, to the extent that they are relevant to the following discussion, they will be referred to appropriately. Section A of this chapter elaborates on TF and the wide range of instruments that have been used and analyzed while section B details some actual experiences in the use of IT in TF. Section C examines small and medium-sized enterprises and IT in TF. Section D summarizes this chapter and considers the implications for inclusive growth.Trade facilitation, ICT, IT, SMEs,