IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ris/integr/0505.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Are Trade Blocs Building or Stumbling Blocs?

Author

Listed:
  • E. Baldwin, Richard

    (Graduate Institute of International Studies)

  • Seghezza, Elena

    (University of Genoa)

Abstract

The stumbling-bloc argument asserts that regionalism hinders MFN tariff cutting. If this was of first-order importance over previous decades, we should detect this in the levels of the tariffs. Using tariff line data for 23 large trading nations we find that MFN and PTA tariffs are complements, not substitutes since margins of preferences tend to be low or zero for products where nations apply high MFN tariffs. One interpretation is that regionalism is neither a building nor a stumbling bloc. Sectoral vested interests are a ‘third factor’ that generates the positive correlation between MFN and PTA tariff levels.

Suggested Citation

  • E. Baldwin, Richard & Seghezza, Elena, 2010. "Are Trade Blocs Building or Stumbling Blocs?," Journal of Economic Integration, Center for Economic Integration, Sejong University, vol. 25, pages 276-297.
    • Handle: RePEc:ris:integr:0505
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    To our knowledge, this item is not available for download. To find whether it is available, there are three options:
    1. Check below whether another version of this item is available online.
    2. Check on the provider's web page whether it is in fact available.
    3. Perform a search for a similarly titled item that would be available.

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gabriel Felbermayr & Wilhelm Kohler & Rahel Aichele & Günther Klee & Erdal Yalcin, 2015. "Potential impact of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partner (TTIP) on developing and emerging countries," ifo Forschungsberichte, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 67, October.
    2. Sebastian Benz & Erdal Yalcin, 2015. "Productivity Versus Employment: Quantifying the Economic Effects of an EU–Japan Free Trade Agreement," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(6), pages 935-961, June.
    3. Zuzanna Studnicka & Wouter Thierie & Jan Van Hove, 2019. "The impact of regional trade agreements on European exports," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 467-488, July.
    4. Crivelli, Pramila, 2016. "Regionalism and falling external protection in high and low tariff members," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 70-84.
    5. NAGEL Daniel, 2017. "The Fate of 21st Century Multilateralism," European Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, Bucharest Economic Academy, issue 02, June.
    6. Essotanam Mamba & Afi Balaki, 2022. "Effects of trade policies on external trade performances of ECOWAS countries (1996–2017)†," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 535-566, July.
    7. Pedro J. Martinez Edo, 2011. "Reciprocal liberalization: Bilateral, plurilateral or multilateral?," STUDIES IN TRADE AND INVESTMENT, in: United Nations ESCAP (ed.), Trade beyond Doha: Prospects for Asia-Pacific Least Developed Countries, Studies in Trade and Investment 76, chapter 4, pages 60-94, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
    8. Kazunobu Hayakawa & Fukunari Kimura, 2015. "How Much Do Free Trade Agreements Reduce Impediments to Trade?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 26(4), pages 711-729, September.
    9. Bougheas, Spiros & Nelson, Doug, 2013. "On the political economy of high skilled migration and international trade," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 206-224.
    10. Paul Missios & Halis Murat Yildiz, 2017. "Do South–South preferential trade agreements undermine the prospects for multilateral free trade?," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 50(1), pages 111-161, February.
    11. Patricia Tovar, 2014. "External tariffs under a free-trade area," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(5), pages 656-681, August.
    12. Mavroidis, Petros C., 2011. "Always look at the bright side of non-delivery: WTO and Preferential Trade Agreements, yesterday and today," World Trade Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(3), pages 375-387, July.
    13. Fugazza, Marco & Nicita, Alessandro, 2013. "The direct and relative effects of preferential market access," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(2), pages 357-368.
    14. Gabriel Felbermayr & Mario Larch & Gabriel J. Felbermayr, 2013. "The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): Potentials, Problems and Perspectives," CESifo Forum, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 14(02), pages 49-60, August.
    15. Gabriel Felbermayr & Mario Larch & Finn Krüger & Lisandra Flach & Erdal Yalcin & Sebastian Benz, 2013. "Dimensionen und Auswirkungen eines Freihandelsabkommens zwischen der EU und den USA," ifo Forschungsberichte, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 62, October.
    16. Gabriel Felbermayr & Mario Larch, 2013. "The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): Potentials, Problems and Perspectives," CESifo Forum, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 14(2), pages 49-60, August.
    17. Evelyn S. Devadason, 2013. "Whither Sub-Regional Cooperation? The CLMV Perspective," Institutions and Economies (formerly known as International Journal of Institutions and Economies), Faculty of Economics and Administration, University of Malaya, vol. 5(2), pages 1-36, July.
    18. Gabriel Felbermayr & Mario Larch & Lisandra Flach & Erdal Yalcin & Sebastian Benz & Finn Krüger, 2013. "Dimensions and Effects of a Transatlantic Free Trade Agreement," ifo Schnelldienst, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 66(04), pages 22-31, February.
    19. Bofinger, Peter & Schnabel, Isabel & Feld, Lars P. & Schmidt, Christoph M. & Wieland, Volker, 2014. "Mehr Vertrauen in Marktprozesse. Jahresgutachten 2014/15 [More confidence in market processes. Annual Report 2014/15]," Annual Economic Reports / Jahresgutachten, German Council of Economic Experts / Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der gesamtwirtschaftlichen Entwicklung, volume 127, number 201415.
    20. Mohd Rosli, 2013. "Book Review: Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Access to Finance in Selected East Asian Economies, by Charlies Harvie, Sothea Oum and Dionisius A. Narjoko, (eds), ERIA Research Project Report 2010-1," Institutions and Economies (formerly known as International Journal of Institutions and Economies), Faculty of Economics and Administration, University of Malaya, vol. 5(2), pages 159-160, July.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Regionalism; Multilateralism; Stumbling Blocs; Trade Blocs;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ris:integr:0505. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Yunhoe Kim (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/desejkr.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.