In The News

Why the Americas Have Drifted Apart

Howard LaFranchi November 3, 2005
When the Summit of the Americas first met, in 1994, it celebrated the spread of democracy in the Western Hemisphere and resolved to create a pan-American free trade zone by 2005. There will be no free trade pact and little celebration, however, when President Bush attends the fourth Summit of the Americas this week. Washington's vision for Latin America is in trouble, hurt by disagreements...

Summit Rhetoric Soars While Economy Sinks

Jeffrey E. Garten November 3, 2005
As the fourth annual Summit of the Americas get under way in Mar Del Plata, a pressing question lingers in the background: Are regional meetings truly worth the trouble? According to Jeffrey E. Garten, Juan Trippe professor in the practice of international trade and finance at The Yale School of Management, world leaders' efforts would be better spent at home, developing and implementing...

The Doha Round and Globalization’s Missing Middle

Barry Desker November 2, 2005
The Doha Round meeting of the WTO is still weeks away but observers are already writing its epitaph. A former senior trade official of Singapore envisages an unsatisfactory conclusion to the trade negotiations in Hong Kong this December, mainly because of its likely failure to reach agreements on agricultural and services liberalization. But there may not be any clear cut “villain” responsible...

Fate of the Farmers in Balance

Edward Gresser November 1, 2005
This December, the WTO is scheduled to convene in Hong Kong, in what could be its final opportunity to adopt the Doha reforms. The negotiators aim to open markets worldwide by cutting the subsidies and tariffs that heavily favor producers in Europe and the United States, but disagreements have repeatedly obstructed their goals. For the average news viewer, the familiar media coverage of loud...

Wolfowitz Calls for End to Farm Subsidies

Mark Tran October 24, 2005
Developed and developing nations must reduce their agricultural subsidies if the World Trade Organization’s current round of trade talks is to succeed, World Bank head Paul Wolfowitz said today. The EU and US must cut subsidies and guarantee market access to developing countries, he said, or “the people who will suffer the most are the world's poor." Yet Mr. Wolfowitz also called on...

Brazil Regrets its China Affair

Matt Moffett October 12, 2005
Two years ago, to much fanfare, China and Brazil entered into a bilateral trade partnership, hoping to propel both populous, ambitious nations to the top of the development heap. With increased exports to China, Brazil made modest economic advances since entering the trade agreement. But in the same period, the world's textile quotas expired, leaving many world economies vulnerable to China...

To Save Global Trade Talks, Act on Agriculture

Kevin Watkins October 7, 2005
The Doha round of trade talks has the potential to significantly reduce global poverty – that is, if the talks are successful. According to the author, the key issue is agriculture. He urges the US and the EU to seriously investigate the propriety of their outsized farming subsidies and high agricultural tariffs, as these policies effectively block farmers in developing companies from enjoying...