Protectionist Responses to the Crisis: Global Trends and Implications

In this paper we take a systematic look at recent trends in global protectionism and at the potential implications of a protectionist backlash for economic growth, using results from the recent economic literature and new model simulations. We find that there has so far been a moderate increase in actual protectionist measures to restrict trade through tariff and non-tariff barriers. At the same time, evidence from surveys shows that public pressure for more economic protection has been mounting since the mid-2000s, and has possibly intensified since the start of the financial crisis. However, no World Trade Organization (WTO) member has retreated into widespread trade restrictions or protectionism to date. Our model-based simulations suggest that the impairment of the global flow of trade would hamper the recovery from the crisis, as well as the long-term growth of the global economy. At the same time, it is unlikely that protectionism would help to correct existing current account imbalances. Moreover, the countries implementing protectionist measures should expect a deterioration of their international competitiveness, which would further affect the potential for longer-term real GDP growth.Protectionism ; trade ; financial crisis ; competitiveness ; World Trade Organization ; global imbalances.

Firms and the global crisis: French exports in the turmoil.

The unprecedented drop in international trade during the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 has mostly been analysed at the macroeconomic or sectoral level. However, heterogeneous exporters in terms of productivity, size or external finance dependence should be hit differently by the crisis. This issue is examined here using data on monthly exports at the product and destination level for some 100,000 individual French exporters, up to 2009M4. We show that the drop in French exports is mainly due to the intensive margin of large exporters. Small and large firms are evenly affected when sectoral and geographical specialisations are controlled for. Lastly, firms (small and large) in sectors structurally more dependent on external finance are the most affected by the crisis.Financial crisis , international trade , firms heterogeneity , intensive and extensive margins.

Why are anopheline mosquitoes not present in the Seychelles?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Species of anopheline mosquitoes are largely distributed over emerged lands around the world and, within the tropics, few areas are without these insects, which are vectors of malaria parasites. Among the exceptions is the Seychelles archipelago in the western Indian Ocean. However, in the Aldabra island group, located in the extreme western portion of the archipelago, <it>Anopheles gambiae s.l. </it>was introduced, leading to massive proliferation and then elimination, with the most recent autochthonous malaria cases recorded in 1931.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In order to re-examine the absence of anopheline mosquitoes in the Seychelles, an entomological field survey was conducted in December 2008 at 17 sites on four granitic islands, including Mahé and Praslin, and ten sites on coralline atolls in the extreme west, including Aldabra.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No evidence of larval or adult anophelines was found at the surveyed sites, which supports their absence in the Seychelles.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In the granitic islands of the Seychelles, the climate is favourable for anophelines. However, these islands are protected by their remoteness and prevailing seasonal winds. In addition, stagnant freshwater, required in anopheline larval development, is relatively uncommon on the granitic islands because of the steep slopes. In the southwestern atolls (Aldabra and Providence-Farquhar groups), the presence of a long dry season of up to nine months and the total absence of permanent natural freshwater prevents the breeding of anophelines and their successful colonization. The Seychelles does not have any native land mammals and like in other parts of the world (Antarctica, Iceland, New Caledonia, Central Pacific islands) their absence is associated with the lack of anophelines. This suggests an obligatory relationship for anophelines to feed on terrestrial mammals, without alternative for blood-feeding sources, such as bats, birds and reptiles.</p

Tobacco industry globalization and global health governance: : towards an interdisciplinary research agenda

Shifting patterns of tobacco production and consumption, and the resultant disease burden worldwide since the late twentieth century prompted efforts to strengthen global health governance through adoption of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. While the treaty is rightfully considered an important achievement, to address a neglected public health issue through collective action, evidence suggests that tobacco industry globalization continues apace. In this article we provide a systematic review of the public health literature and reveal definitional and measurement imprecision, ahistorical timeframes, transnational tobacco companies and the state as the primary units and levels of analysis, and a strong emphasis on agency as opposed to structural power. Drawing on the study of globalization in international political economy and business studies, we identify opportunities to expand analysis along each of these dimensions. We conclude that this expanded and interdisciplinary research agenda provides the potential for fuller understanding of the dual and dynamic relationship between the tobacco industry and globalization. Deeper analysis of how the industry has adapted to globalization over time, as well as how the industry has influenced the nature and trajectory of globalization, is essential for building effective global governance responses

In the wake of the global crisis : evidence from a new quarterly database of export competitiveness

Over the past two decades, international trade has become a privileged engine of growth for much of the developing world. With the global economy evolving continuously and rapidly, countries must pay close attention to their positioning on the map of global trade and production. Within this framework, countries must also become aware of how they fare relative to competitors and to their past export performance. Of particular importance is the extent to which their performance is driven by exporter own supply-side capacity as opposed to external or compositional factors, including product and geographical specialization and how these trends compare across countries. This paper describes a new initiative that uses quarterly data for 2005q1-2013q1 to compute comparable indicators of export performance for 228 countries and territories. The database, the Export Competitiveness Database, reveals interesting patterns in trade performance. Export performance, stripped of compositional effects, was strongest for countries from the Asia and Pacific region, on average. Moreover, such performance was almost entirely driven by exporting country specific factors, with changes reflecting growth in volume rather than price developments. All emerging and developing regions have, on average, improved export performance. The indicators in the database trace the legacy of supply-side capacity and the overall export performance of the double-dip recession in the euro area. An illustrative set of results suggests that the paper's measure of competitiveness correlates to a country's nominal and real effective exchange rate, factors that are commonly perceived as important determinants of competitiveness

Preliaminary Evaluation of a Radioactive Waste Repository Safety Performance by a Monte Carlo Simulation-Based Reliability Model

International audienceDisposal facilities are designed to provide long-term isolation of the wastes from the human environment by means of a system of barriers, both engineered and natural. In this regard, it is required that the containment function of the multi-barrier system be evaluated by a quantitative risk analysis procedure, also called performance assessment. This entails the implementation of a Probabilistic Safety Assessment model for representing the stochastic failure behavior of the repository barriers, estimating the release rates of radionuclides into the groundwater stream and the doses from subsequent ingestion of drinking water. To this aim, a Monte Carlo simulation scheme is provided within a reliability modelling approach for the safety performance analysis of a repository, accounting also for barrier degradation processes. An application to a case study of the literature is presented to validate the approach and demonstrate its simplicity and flexibility