The impact of plurilateral trade agreements on developing countries – to participate or not to participate?

In the wake of the impasse in the Doha Development Round of multilateral trade talks, sector-specific plurilateral trade agreements (PTAs) have been gaining traction. However, PTAs mostly appeal to developed countries, with the uptake among developing countries (including least-developed countries) being very limited. This article investigates the factors contributing to such a phenomenon, whether there is indeed merit in developing countries playing a more active role in PTAs and how they might be encouraged to do so. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted with specific attention being given to the effects, on a selection of developing countries, of participation in four PTAs: the Trade in Services Agreement, the Government Procurement Agreement, the Environmental Goods Agreement and the Information Technology Agreement II. Among the findings was that although, according to the qualitative analysis, policymakers are generally disinterested in the four PTAs because they are not aligned to the countries’ economic interests or they threaten policy space, the quantitative analysis revealed that gains could often be made from more active participation in these agreements. This clearly points to a research gap and highlights the need for more in-depth analysis of the potential of PTAs in the developing world.     

日韩关注中国物流托盘标准的原因探析

托盘是物流产业中最为基本的集装单元,在商品流通中具有广泛的应用价值。托盘标准的选用直接涉及到国家经济安全和产业发展。从商品贸易的角度来看,托盘标准是一种贸易技术壁垒,能够起到增进商品出口或者保护国内市场的作用。从日韩关注中国托盘标准的背景下,分析中、日、韩双边贸易格局和T11标准的应用广泛程度,发现日韩不仅是我国最大的进口国,而且是最大的逆差国之一,T11在日韩国内和国际上的应用范围也并不广泛。如果我国选用T11,开展中、日、韩托盘共用合作,会加剧我国对日韩的贸易逆差,对我国经济产生不利影响。因此,我国政府应该暂缓采纳T11标准,灵活运用托盘贸易技术壁垒来保护国内产品市场。     

近年来中国金融运行对经济发展的影响

扩张性的财政政策和稳健的货币政策 ,对保持经济的稳定增长起了决定性的作用。但中国经济发展的不平衡和金融体系自身的缺陷限制了这些作用的进一步发挥 ,货币投放与投资、消费的比例不相协调。当前需要实施结构性的货币政策 ,使金融运行进一步适应产业的升级换代和扩大消费的需要。     

论循环型社会发展的执行体系与制度创新——以江苏为例

循环社会发展的本质特征是一种社会生活方式和生产及消费模式的转型,即从注重物质消费经济人向注重人与自然和谐、追求环境质量最大化的生态人的转型。近年来江苏的现代化进程和社会经济进一步协调发展为这种系统转型提供了较好的社会基础,而积极构建循环型社会的规划建设体系、政策支撑体系、组织管理体系、制度推进体系、法律保障体系,将为循环社会的建成提供基本动力和重要条件。     

Surveillance and resilience: Relationships,dynamics, and consequences

“Resilience” is a contested term with varying and ambiguous meaning in governmental, business, and social discourses. Surveillance is increasingly relied on as an instrument for resilience, enhancing the capability of anticipating, preventing, or recovering from adversity, thus preserving the fabric of society and the state. However, surveillance itself might undesirably erode social freedoms, rights, and other public goods. In the present study we focus on the interrelationship of surveillance and resilience. Studying the relationships between surveillance and resilience requires not only the theoretical study of possible examples but also the exploration and evaluation of the resilient entity’s core properties, strategies, and tactics and the external observer’s stance toward the entity in question. Furthermore, different contexts may exhibit different effects of surveillance on resilience. For example, an increase in surveillance by a democratic state may lead to increasing resilience of the state in the face of terrorist attacks but may also lead to the decreasing resilience of that society’s ability to exercise democratic values. The various models generated by these differing relationships will be explored with relation to three examples: the surveillance of international migration, the surveillance of extremist views, and the surveillance of digital financial transactions.     

《中国—东盟全面经济合作框架协议》签署以来广西与东盟经贸合作分析

2002年11月4日,中国与东盟签署《中国—东盟全面经济合作框架协议》,标志着中国与东盟的经贸合作进入了一个新的历史阶段。10年来,广西凭借区位优势,与东盟各国在各领域都开展积极的合作,尤其是在经贸领域,无论是货物贸易、服务贸易还是投资合作都取得了可喜的成绩。今年是《中国—东盟全面经济合作框架协议》签署10周年,本文重点分析《中国—东盟全面经济合作框架协议》签署以来,广西与东盟经贸合作的成绩、特点和存在的问题,并在此基础上具有针对性地提出相应对策。     

“转变官风”的分析与建议

党风官风,关乎国家的前途和民族的兴衰,是一等一的大事.需从经济学的角度,对当前群众反应强烈的"文山会海"、"官书官学"、"公款消费"等问题加以探讨,以此引起社会各界的关注与讨论.     

“无理由退货”的经济学分析

"无理由退货"是一种刚刚兴起的厂商的市场创新形式,是一种新的非价格竞争手段。用经济学的方法尤其是采用博弈论和一般均衡的分析方法来分析"无理由退货"中厂商的利益函数以及它们的策略互动,可以看出厂商从事这种行为的动机。政府通过立法的形式对该市场行为进行约束,其动机是促使市场行为向增进社会总福利的方向变化。     

“位置消费”应当正视和研究的意义

传统经济学从"经济人"假设出发,在"效用最大化"原则下,只研究人们消费绝对量的增加,忽视了人们在消费中相对量的比较,以及由比较中所产生的位置和名次的变化,没有反映消费行为的社会性和相对性.位置消费理论弥补了传统经济学的研究缺陷,对于建立有效、合理的制度安排,衡量和评判改革的绩效,促进地区经济的协调发展,促进企业营销策略选择都有重要的现实意义.     

“场景教学“在《危险物品管理》课程教学中的应用

"场景教学"旨在把<危险物品管理>课堂教学中的每一章节都构成一个个连续的、能够调动学生主观能动性的学习场景.学生参与、师生互动,强化学生的特定情境感受性,激活了知识,激发了学生的学习兴趣.危险物品管理"场景教学"应用的基本程序是课前准备阶段(设景)、实际应用阶段(展景)和总结补充阶段(补景).应注意的问题是合理衔接教学内容,科学设计难度层次;正确把握、适时控制课堂教学进程.