International trade is the exchange of capital， goods and services across international boundaries or [1] In most countries， it represents a significant share of GDP While international trade has been present throughout much of history (see Silk Road， Amber Road)， its economic， social， and political importance has been on the rise in recent Industrialization， advanced transportation， globalization， multinational corporations， and outsourcing are all having a major impact on the international trade Increasing international trade is crucial to the continuance of International trade is a major source of economic revenue for any nation that is considered a world Without international trade， nations would be limited to the goods and services produced within their own International trade is in principle not different from domestic trade as the motivation and the behavior of parties involved in a trade does not change fundamentally depending on whether trade is across a border or The main difference is that international trade is typically more costly than domestic The reason is that a border typically imposes additional costs such as tariffs， time costs due to border delays and costs associated with country differences such as language， the legal system or a different Another difference between domestic and international trade is that factors of production such as capital and labor are typically more mobile within a country than across Thus international trade is mostly restricted to trade in goods and services， and only to a lesser extent to trade in capital， labor or other factors of Then trade in good and services can serve as a substitute for trade in factors of Instead of importing the factor of production a country can import goods that make intensive use of the factor of production and are thus embodying the respective An example is the import of labor-intensive goods by the United States from C Instead of importing Chinese labor the United States is importing goods from China that were produced with Chinese International trade is also a branch of economics， which， together with international finance， forms the larger branch of international ModelsSeveral different models have been proposed to predict patterns of trade and to analyze the effects of trade policies such as [edit] Ricardian modelMain article: Ricardian modelThe Ricardian model focuses on comparative advantage and is perhaps the most important concept in international trade In a Ricardian model， countries specialize in producing what they produce Unlike other models， the Ricardian framework predicts that countries will fully specialize instead of producing a broad array of Also， the Ricardian model does not directly consider factor endowments， such as the relative amounts of labor and capital within a [edit] Heckscher-Ohlin modelMain article: Heckscher-Ohlin modelThe Heckscher-Ohlin model was produced as an alternative to the Ricardian model of basic comparative Despite its greater complexity it did not prove much more accurate in its However from a theoretical point of view it did provide an elegant solution by incorporating the neoclassical price mechanism into international trade The theory argues that the pattern of international trade is determined by differences in factor It predicts that countries will export those goods that make intensive use of locally abundant factors and will import goods that make intensive use of factors that are locally Empirical problems with the H-O model， known as the Leontief paradox， were exposed in empirical tests by Wassily Leontief who found that the United States tended to export labor intensive goods despite having a capital [edit] Specific factors modelIn this model， labour mobility between industries is possible while capital is immobile between industries in the short- Thus， this model can be interpreted as a 'short run' version of the Heckscher-Ohlin The specific factors name refers to the given that in the short-run specific factors of production， such as physical capital， are not easily transferable between The theory suggests that if there is an increase in the price of a good， the owners of the factor of production specific to that good will profit in real Additionally， owners of opposing specific factors of production ( labour and capital) are likely to have opposing agendas when lobbying for controls over immigration of Conversely， both owners of capital and labour profit in real terms from an increase in the capital This model is ideal for particular This model is ideal for understanding income distribution but awkward for discussing the pattern of trade![edit] New Trade TheoryMain article: New Trade TheoryNew Trade theory tries to explain several facts about trade， which the two main models above have difficulty These include the fact that most trade is between countries with similar factor endowment and productivity levels， and the large amount of multinational production (ie foreign direct investment) which In one example of this framework， the economy exhibits monopolistic competition， and increasing returns to [edit] Gravity modelMain article: Gravity model of tradeThe Gravity model of trade presents a more empirical analysis of trading patterns rather than the more theoretical models discussed The gravity model， in its basic form， predicts trade based on the distance between countries and the interaction of the countries' economic The model mimics the Newtonian law of gravity which also considers distance and physical size between two The model has been proven to be empirically strong through econometric Other factors such as income level， diplomatic relationships between countries， and trade policies are also included in expanded versions of the [edit] Regulation of international tradeTraditionally trade was regulated through bilateral treaties between two For centuries under the belief in Mercantilism most nations had high tariffs and many restrictions on international In the 19th century， especially in Britain， a belief in free trade became This belief became the dominant thinking among western nations since then despite the acknowledgement that adoption of the policy coincided with the general decline of Great B In the years since the Second World War， controversial multilateral treaties like the GATT and World Trade Organization have attempted to create a globally regulated trade These trade agreements have often resulted in protest and discontent with claims of unfair trade that is not mutually Free trade is usually most strongly supported by the most economically powerful nations， though they often engage in selective protectionism for those industries which are strategically important such as the protective tariffs applied to agriculture by the United States and E The Netherlands and the United Kingdom were both strong advocates of free trade when they were economically dominant， today the United States， the United Kingdom， Australia and Japan are its greatest However， many other countries (such as India， China and Russia) are increasingly becoming advocates of free trade as they become more economically powerful As tariff levels fall there is also an increasing willingness to negotiate non tariff measures， including foreign direct investment， procurement and trade The latter looks at the transaction cost associated with meeting trade and customs Traditionally agricultural interests are usually in favour of free trade while manufacturing sectors often support This has changed somewhat in recent years， In fact， agricultural lobbies， particularly in the United States， Europe and Japan， are chiefly responsible for particular rules in the major international trade treaties which allow for more protectionist measures in agriculture than for most other goods and During recessions there is often strong domestic pressure to increase tariffs to protect domestic This occurred around the world during the Great D Many economists have attempted to portray tariffs as the underlining reason behind the collapse in world trade that many believe seriously deepened the The regulation of international trade is done through the World Trade Organization at the global level， and through several other regional arrangements such as MERCOSUR in South America， NAFTA between the United States， Canada and Mexico， and the European Union between 27 independent The 2005 Buenos Aires talks on the planned establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) failed largely due to opposition from the populations of Latin American Similar agreements such as the MAI (Multilateral Agreement on Investment) have also failed in recent [edit] Risks in international tradeThe risks that exist in international trade can be divided into two major groups
Protectionism Doesn't Pay The global financial crisis is no doubt a catalyst for trade As the world economy deteriorates， some countries try to boost growth prospects by erecting trade China calls on these governments not to replay history and revert to protectionism and economic Previous global economic crises were usually accompanied by frequent trade The United States' erection of large-scale tariffs in 1930， for example， triggered a retaliatory global trade During the two oil shocks in the 1970s and 1980s， trade frictions emerged when major economies attempted to increase exports by depreciating their And in the wake of the 1997 Asian financial crisis， there was a notable uptick in antidumping actions， countervailing duties and other protectionist The financial crisis is now spilling over into the real economy， hitting sectors like manufacturing and In almost all countries， factories are closing and unemployment is rising， creating political pressure and social More and more governments are strengthening intervention in their economies under the excuse of 'economic security' and protecting vulnerable domestic industries to curb imports from other countries， especially those in emerging Trade protectionism differs from legally acceptable measures to protect It is an abuse of remedies provided by multilateral trade This kind of protectionism is morphing into more complex and disguised forms， ranging from conventional tariff and nontariff barriers to technical barriers to trade， industry standards and industry With the economic crisis worsening， caution must be taken even in employing trade protection measures consistent with World Trade Organization At the Group of 20 Financial Summit in November 2008， world leaders called for countries to resist trade protectionism and committed themselves to refraining from erecting new barriers to trade and investment， a message strongly echoed by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit at the end of last year， and the World Economic Forum held in Davos last History tells us that trade protection measures hurt not only other countries， but eventually the country that erected that trade barrier in the first To counter the Great Depression， the US adopted the Smoot-Hawley Act in 1930， which raised import duties of over 20，000 foreign products significantly and provoked protectionist retaliation from other Faced with that crisis， other countries pursued beggar-thy-neighbor policies that slashed global trade volumes from $36 billion in 1929 to $12 billion in Among the victims， not the least was the US itself， where exports shrank from $2 billion in 1929 to $2 billion in Even in the US， the Smoot-Hawley Act was widely believed to be a catalyst that aggravated the effects of Great DGlobal trade is now in dire Thanks to shrinking external demand caused by the economic crisis， major trading countries have seen their export growth tumble or have suffered huge Germany's exports dropped 6% in November 2008， compared to the same period the prior year -- the highest one-month drop since China also experienced negative export growth in November， and a 5% decline last month， when compared to the prior Protectionist policies would make things even worse and the consequences would be hard to In the heat of the crisis， it's critical that all countries refrain from pointing fingers at each other or pursuing their own interests at the expense of The financial crisis reflects a chronic illness resulting from global economic structural imbalance and financial risk accumulation， and there is no quick fix to this The fundamental interest of every country is to step up consultation and cooperation and keep international trade smoothly Healthy international trade can help revive the world During the Great Depression， the US recovered from its economic woes because the Franklin D Roosevelt administration implemented the New Deal and shunned Today's unprecedented financial crisis has inflicted a severe impact on China and other countries as China's economic growth has slowed， exports have plunged and unemployment pressure has Yet even so， China still firmly believes that trade protectionism isn't a solution to the world's In 2008， amid a contraction in global trade， China imported $133 trillion worth of goods from countries around the world -- an 5% increase over the prior These imports are boosting the economic development of China's trading Since the crisis broke out， the Chinese government has decisively put forward a series of measures aiming at stimulating domestic Given the size and openness of our country， the growth in China's domestic markets can be translated into greater market potential and investment opportunities for other This year China will continue to increase imports and send buying missions abroad for large-scale purchase of equipment， products and China has always championed our mutually beneficial opening-up policy and advocated international economic We maintain that the Doha Round of global trade negotiations should be taken forward in a way that meets the interests of members and complies with the multilateral trading system already China is ready to stand together with all nations in the world to face up to the challenges of today， tackle the financial crisis through cooperation and guide the world economy into a new period of 贸易保护主义无法拯救世界经济对贸易保护主义来说，全球金融危机无疑是一针催化剂。近一时期，随着全球经济形势恶化，一些国家自危、自利、自保倾向抬头。有识之士为此感到忧虑，呼吁各国在出台经济刺激计划时，一定要防止贸易保护主义和经济孤立主义的历史重演。历次全球经济危机往往都伴随着贸易争端的高发。1930年美国政府大范围提高关税，引发了全球范围报复性贸易战。上世纪七八十年代两次石油危机时，主要国家放任货币贬值以扩大出口的作法引发了贸易摩擦。1997年亚洲金融危机之后，全球反倾销、反补贴和保障措施案件明显增多。当前，金融危机已蔓延到制造业、服务业等实体经济领域，各国工厂倒闭剧增，失业率上升，政治压力和社会问题接踵而至。越来越多国家以“经济安全”和保护本国虚弱产业为由加强政府对经济的干预，阻挠其他国家特别是新兴国家企业出口。贸易保护主义不同于正当的贸易保护措施，它是对多边贸易规则中救济措施的滥用。从传统的关税和非关税壁垒，到技术性贸易壁垒、行业标准等，以及产业保护主义，当前贸易保护主义的形式更加复杂多样，隐蔽性更强。在危机加剧的背景下，即使符合WTO规则的保护措施也应慎用，这已成为各国共识。在2008年11月举行的G20金融峰会上，各国领导人同声呼吁抵制贸易保护主义，承诺在未来一年内，避免设置新的贸易和投资壁垒。年底的APEC领导人会议和今年初的世界经济论坛达沃斯年会，再次发出了反对保护主义强音。历史是一面镜子。任何针对他国的贸易保护举措，不仅会损害对方，最终也会伤及自身。经验告诉我们，大规模的贸易保护措施将使金融危机下本已严峻的经济形势更加困难。1930年美国为了应对经济危机，颁发了《斯姆特－霍利关税法》，大幅提高超过2万种外国商品的进口关税，结果引起了其他国家的贸易保护主义报复。面对危机，各国以邻为壑，全球贸易总额大幅缩减，从1929年的360亿美元缩小到1932年的120亿美元，美国自身也深受其害，出口总额从1929年的52亿美元左右缩减到1932年的12亿美元。这一法案即使在美国国内也被普遍认为是大萧条加剧的催化剂。如今全球贸易形势已相当严峻：经济危机导致外需衰退，各主要贸易国的出口增速已急剧下滑，甚至出现大幅萎缩。德国08年11月份出口额较前月大幅下滑6%，为1990年以来的最大单月降幅。中国08年11月以来出口连续出现负增长，其中09年1月出口下降了5%。如果未来贸易保护主义泛滥，使严峻的形势雪上加霜，造成的后果很难预料。我们应该认真思索，这样的后果世界能否承受，又是否值得承受？危机当头，重要的是各国携手共克时艰，而非互相指责，以邻为壑。金融危机是全球经济结构失衡、金融风险积聚长期积累的结果，解决问题也不可能一蹴而就。当前加强磋商、增强合作，保持国际贸易渠道畅通，才符合各国的根本利益。国际贸易的健康发展，是推动世界经济复苏的重要力量。当年罗斯福政府实行新政，与贸易保护主义决裂，带领美国经济走出低谷，推动了全球经济的增长。在这场前所未有的世界金融危机中，中国与其他国家一样都受到严重冲击。去年第三季度以来，经济增速放缓，出口大幅下滑，就业压力加大。即便如此，中国仍坚定认为，贸易保护主义是条死胡同。在全球贸易萎缩的情况下，2008年中国从各国进口11331亿美元的商品，增长5％，促进了贸易伙伴的经济发展。危机爆发以来，中国政府果断出台了一系列扩大内需的措施。作为一个开放的大国，中国内需的提升可为其他国家提供更大的市场空间和更多的投资机会。今年，中国将继续扩大进口，积极组织企业采购团，赴海外大规模采购，进口设备、商品和技术。中国始终奉行互利共赢的开放战略，倡导国际经济合作。我们主张积极推进符合各国利益与多边贸易体制的多哈回合谈判。中国愿与世界各国一道，以开放迎接挑战，以合作应对危机，共克时艰，推动世界经济走向新的繁荣。
