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An Interim Assessment of the US Trade Policy of ‘Competitive Liberalization’
Author(s) -
Evenett Simon J.,
Meier Michael
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
world economy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.594
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1467-9701
pISSN - 0378-5920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9701.2007.01081.x
Subject(s) - interim , principal (computer security) , liberalization , international trade , negotiation , commercial policy , economics , free trade , international economics , foreign policy , rules of origin , political science , market economy , law , politics , computer science , operating system
Since 2001, the Administration of George W. Bush has pursued a trade policy known as Competitive Liberalization. This policy envisages a series of mutually‐reinforcing and sequential steps to open markets abroad to US companies, to strengthen market‐oriented laws and regulations overseas, and to place the United States at the centre of the world trading system. Foreign and security policy considerations have influenced US trade policy making, perhaps more so than in the 1990s. To date the principal outcome of this policy has been the negotiation by the United States of numerous free trade agreements, mainly with developing countries, individually or in sub‐regional groupings. In addition to characterising this policy in detail, the principal purpose of this paper is to assess the logic underlying this approach to trade policy making and whether Competitive Liberalization has begun to fulfil the promise spelled out for it at the beginning of this decade.