A draft decision regarding Small and Vulnerable Economies (SVEs) has been adopted by the WTO for its 10th Ministerial Conference (MC) in Nairobi. As of now it is a mere skeletal structure, primarily highlighting the problems that these countries face in international trade and encouraging further effort towards solving such issues. SVEs are disadvantaged owing… Continue reading Newsflash: Draft Decision for SVEs adopted
So there’s recently a lot of talk going around in trade law circles about the supposedly “grossly illegitimate” ruling in the long-standing Tuna/Dolphin dispute at the WTO. Some of you may already be aware of the problem underlying the case. It involves a complaint by Mexico against the United States regarding certain requirements that the latter… Continue reading Is the WTO Dispute Settlement system in danger?
Trade law news roundup from Law360: Panama wins a WTO case against Guatemala as the latter failed to show that its increased tariffs were justified on the grounds of money laundering prevention. IMF allows the Chinese Renminbi (RMB) to be included in the “Special Drawing Right” category of currencies from October next year, joining the Dollar,… Continue reading Tariffs, TPP, Tokes and Terrorism.
Taking the cue from a blog I visited a few days back, I decided to include short posts comprising of links to interesting articles, commentaries and blog-posts that I come across daily. These will not be restricted to international trade law and will have stuff on general international law, arbitration law and probably some IPR and investment law… Continue reading Trade and Beyond – Assorted Readings #1
The irony in the title is that while the 1987 Robbin Williams starrer was based on the US war in Vietnam during the 60s and 70s, this post is about a 21st Century trade pact where the former is still trying to “make the world more like them“. Let me explain. The United States is one of the few… Continue reading Part II: Good morning, Vietnam!
The TPP is definitely the talk of the town. It’s mentioned everywhere. In newspaper op-eds to academic articles. You may have heard of it – a massive “free-trade” pact between 12 (majorly pacific-rim) countries, spearheaded by the United States. Apart from Vietnam, Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) members include countries like New Zealand, Australia, Brunei, Singapore, Peru and Mexico. The double-quotations around the… Continue reading Let’s talk about the TPP: Part I
Often, the incentive to write on a subject can be found in the work of experts from that field. When I first began posting for the blog, my main source of trade law news was Simon Lester’s International Economic Law and Policy blog. That, coupled with matter form WorldTradeLaw.net was my daily source of trade inspiration, providing… Continue reading To import or not to import? : The case of Argentina- Financial Services
In the last post, I had briefly talked about how Argentina’s debt crisis had forced the nation to impose certain restrictions on imports from nations like the United States, the European Union, Japan and Mexico. These measures, including measures like the the Advanced Sworn Import Declaration (ASID), which required foreign firms to secure approval by… Continue reading ASID attack, Part 2 of Argentina’s WTO woes: Interpretation of Article XI:1
Yesterday, a WTO panel came out against Argentina by ruling that certain domestic instruments undertaken by the nation restricted EU goods from competing fairly in the domestic Argentine market, including measures the Advanced Sworn Import Declaration (ASID), which required foriegn firms to secure approval by the Argentine authorities before importing goods. The same provides an interesting perspective into the North-South divide,… Continue reading Ms. Cristina’s trouble with ASID: Trade’s essential policy dilemma and Argentina’s debt crisis
It had to happen. There was too much at stake. India’s new government had boldly stood by its predecessor’s decision to provide massive agricultural subsidies through the implementation of the National Food Security Act (NFSA), passed last year. On the other side, the US had decided to amplify its attempts to conclude the pending TPP negotiations, which… Continue reading How India landed in a very common crisis: a much-needed response to the TFA controversy
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