Concepts of Fairness in the Global Trading System

In this paper, we first discuss why fairness is a condition of the agreements among governments that form the global trading system. We then suggest that fairness can best be considered within the framework of two concepts: equality of opportunity and distributive equity. We observe that the efficiency criterion is not a primary yardstick of fairness, and though it is relevant in choosing among alternative ways of realizing fairness, it is not without its own limitations. We thereafter discuss what equality of opportunity and distributive equity mean when applied to the commitments that governments make in the global trading system. For this purpose, we divide these commitments into four categories: those relating directly to market access; those concerning supporting rules designed to prevent cheating in market access commitments or to facilitate trade flows; those relating to procedures for the settlement of disputes or the use of trade remedy measures; and those relating to governance of the system. (We say nothing in this paper about the issue of fairness in the context of the last category.) Finally, we make some comments about fairness in the Doha Development Round, first reviewing some proposals made by Stiglitz and Charlton, and then making some observations about the central issue of market access.

Issues of Fairness in International Trade Agreements

In this paper, we first describe the characteristics of the World Trade Organization (WTO) that are the basis of the framework of the multilateral trading system. We then provide an overview of concepts of fairness in trade agreements. Thereafter, we offer a critique of the efficiency criterion in assessing multilateral trade agreements, taking issue with T.N. Srinivasan’s (2006) analysis and then elaborate on our conception of fairness as reflected in agreements covering market access. We also address considerations of distributive justice, in contrast with Srinivasan’s contention that distributive justice has no role to play in the design and negotiation of multilateral trade agreements. Finally, we question bilateral trade agreements from the standpoint of fairness, drawing on the example of the U.S. bilateral FTA negotiated in 2005 with Central America and the Dominican Republic.Fairness, Equality of Opportunity, Distributive Equity

Global Market Integration and National Sovereignty

In this paper, we first trace the evolution of the global trading system from the 19th century to the present-day GATT/WTO arrangements, calling attention to the key roles of reciprocity and nondiscrimination, and we note how the system is now challenged by the new paradigm of global market integration. We then consider the recent plethora of free trade agreements (FTAs), including those between industrial and developing countries, and their uneasy relationship with a multilateral system based on non-discrimination.. Thereafter, we seek to identify the boundaries of the WTO and examine how the potential expansion of these boundaries extension and weakening of the effectiveness and influence of the WTO.Reciprocity, Non-Discrimination; Boundaries of WTO Regime

Fairness in the WTO Trading System

We first provide a brief critique of the utilitarian principle as a guide to fairness in the world trading system. We then turn to the alternative conception of fairness in terms of economic equity, exploring the meaning of its two components: equality of opportunity and distributive justice. We thereafter proceed to discuss the conditions of autonomy and reciprocity that have to be met in order to realize greater fairness in multilateral trade negotiations. Next, we comment on aspects of procedural justice that are necessary for the functioning of a fair trading system. Finally, we conclude with an overall assessment of the considerations of the fairness achieved in the Uruguay Round multilateral negotiations.Fairness, Equality of Opportunity, Distributive Justice, Global Trading System

What Are the Issues in Using Trade Agreements for Improving International Labor Standards?

This paper addresses the issues of whether the linking of core labor standards with multilateral or bilateral trade agreements is an effective way of promoting the improvement of labor standards. We review the determinants of core labor standards over time and conclude that efforts to improve these standards have to be tailored to the economic and social circumstances prevailing in a country at a specific time. Legalistic means to prod governments into revising their domestic laws or enforcing them will therefore be unsuccessful unless economic incentives can be changed to erode prevailing social norms and ease the way for the acceptance of new norms that will meet with public approval and be consonant with the distribution of political power. Moral suasion from both domestic and external sources may work more slowly than more legalistic means but is preferred because it contributes to altering the social norms that underlie and will reinforce the acceptance and effectiveness of labor standards.International labor standards, social norms, trade agreements

An Analysis of Changing Measurement Techniques on the Dew Point Record in Iowa

Over the past 40 years, dew point measurement techniques have changed. From human measurements to automated instruments, and the implementation of uniform ASOS stations, the way dew points have been measured has changed immensely. These changes in types of measurements have an unknown effect on the dew point record. It is possible that these changes could skew the dew point trend over long periods of time. These changes are especially important when assessing climate changes. If differences exist, a reliable method of assessing the differences could be developed. This study assesses the differences in dew point measurement techniques and their effect on the resulting measurements

Nitric Oxide Sensing and Response in Vibrio Cholerae

Nitric oxide (NO) is a radical capable of inhibiting bacterial growth. Bacteria in turn have multiple mechanisms of resisting the toxic effects of NO, usually encoded by genes under the control of NO-responsive transcription factors. However, our knowledge of the protein targets of NO is limited, as is the function of many NO-regulated genes. We studied two genes in V. cholerae, hmpA and nnrS, which encode a flavohemoglobin and a protein of unknown function, respectively, both predicted to be under control of the NO-responsive transcription factor NorR. We confirmed that both promoters were regulated by NorR and found that all three genes were important for growth in the presence of NO stress. We then performed a metabolomic study on multiple strains of V. cholerae, finding new potential metabolic targets of NO. In particular we found that substrates of iron-sulfur cluster-containing proteins accumulated in strains lacking nnrS, and that aconitase activity was decreased in cell-free extracts of nnrS mutants. Chelation of ferrous iron reversed the growth defect imposed by nnrS deletion; furthermore, strains lacking nnrS possessed lower ferrous iron concentrations. These data suggest that NnrS, a protein of previously unknown function, protects against the formation of NO-iron complexes. We also found that hmpA and norR are important for survival during colonization of the mouse intestines in response to host-generated NO, whereas nnrS is dispensable

Anomalous Quasiparticle Symmetries and Non-Abelian Defects on Symmetrically Gapped Surfaces of Weak Topological Insulators

We show that boundaries of 3D weak topological insulators can become gapped by strong interactions while preserving all symmetries, leading to Abelian surface topological order. The anomalous nature of the weak topological insulators manifests itself in a non-trivial action of symmetries on the quasiparticles; most strikingly, translations change the anyon types in a manner impossible in strictly 2D systems with the same symmetry. As a further consequence, screw dislocations form non-Abelian defects that trap $\mathbb{Z}_4$ parafermion zero modes.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure