Search Results for: protectionism

Tariff threats disrupt global trade, challenging African bodies like the SADC and highlighting the need for stronger regional unity.

Washington has grown impatient with complacent allies. If Europe wants global influence, it will have to earn it.

Washington and Beijing are increasingly deploying measures aimed at bolstering their national security, while targeting each other’s strategic economic sectors.

Criticizing Trump is easy. But fixing Europe’s overspending, regulations and complacency, while harder, is worth the effort.

Japan needs to adapt its security strategy and strengthen alliances in response to rising tensions with Russia and China.

A major geopolitical realignment is dismantling traditional foreign aid systems in favor of limited measures to bolster strategic national interests.

Carbon pricing mechanisms are gaining traction, but a global deal remains elusive.

Tariffs may not directly lead to inflation, but they risk nudging central banks in the wrong direction.

As transatlantic commerce ruptures, the EU is reassessing its strategic and economic priorities with the U.S. and leaning toward China and India.

Europe’s strategic position and internal diversity offer vast opportunities in global competition, but self-centered policies can turn potential into peril if left unaddressed.

German trade statistics are sagging. Most commentators attribute this phenomenon to the global business cycle. More likely, today’s figures are the outcome of earlier decisions made by German companies to move resources outside of Europe, and they are now developing their products elsewhere.

President Donald Trump declared on October 1 that the new trade deal with Canada and Mexico signifies the return of the U.S. as a “manufacturing powerhouse,” which has indeed changed dramatically since 1992. But the complex and varied factors that have reshaped factory production in the U.S. cannot be summarily reversed.

For the global economy, the road ahead is unusually clear – it is headed for a gentle slowdown. But that is no reason for complacency. The next wave of trouble is already visible in the developing countries, which are highly vulnerable to rising interest rates. The EU could do much to prevent the economic slowdown if it cared to.

Brexit talks were supposed to be concluded at the EU summit on October 17. But the deadline passed with no breakthrough. With the clock to a “hard Brexit” ticking down, this could be the salutary shock needed to reach a compromise — or point to a future in which encourages a drift toward protectionism.

It is unusual when CEOs purport to define their companies’ overarching objectives. Things become even more curious when top managers team up with a bureaucracy to call for the imposition of tighter environmental standards on business.

The flip side of the Trump administration’s drive to reduce the U.S. foreign trade deficit is that it will leave the rest of the world with fewer dollars to finance its budget deficit. President Trump could cut spending drastically or persuade the Federal Reserve to buy more bonds, but neither seems likely.

The government of India has implemented a protectionist policy on trade, taking measures to boost domestic manufacturing. Yet exports have failed to increase, in part because of red tape and poor logistics.

Old industrial countries’ paternalistic approach to Global South countries is wrongheaded and impractical.

A growing middle class, increasing continental integration and huge economic potential all provide reason to be optimistic about the future of Africa’s aviation sector. Yet many governments still see the industry as a cash cow or point of national pride.

Disruptive challenges to the global liberal order are intensifying. The future of globalization will be shaped by factors like climate change, protectionism, public debt and resource scarcities.

From trade protectionism to government overspending, bad economic ideas are weakening the world’s stability, while increasingly confrontational policies are adopted by global and regional powers.

After a surprisingly good 2017, world trade should do even better this year. But that doesn’t mean that Europe and the United States can afford to be passive. China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which will turn most of Asia into a privileged trade zone, demands a choice – either join the initiative or promote free trade outside it.

The WTO is a relatively cheap international organization, but it has achieved little since its creation in 1995. Reforms could make the WTO more useful, especially if they turned it into a body that collects fines from those who violate simple rules – with no exceptions.

Trade between the U.S. and the EU is likely to strengthen, even despite shifting geopolitical and geoeconomic winds.

Over the past two years, protectionism has dominated U.S. trade policy decisions regarding the Asia-Pacific region. However, there are signs that the administration could soften its stance and return to more pro-free trade policies. If it does, that could lay the groundwork for a return to bigger economic engagement in the region.

Africa in 2018 was marked by important advances on the economic front, with the agreement to create a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA). While trade liberalization has the potential to be transformative for Africa, disparate stages of development, protectionist impulses, and political tensions may prevent meaningful advances.

Since the beginning of this year, the future of globalization has come under scrutiny, and may well be heading toward uncharted waters.

We are probably coming to the end of a global economic recovery. But with interest rates still hovering around zero, central banks will have no ammunition to fight a recession. Meanwhile, debt is high and more trade barriers are going up. The underlying causes in imbalances of global economy must be addressed.

President Trump’s announcement of tariffs signals a drastic shift, prompting global alarm. However, it is also a potential opportunity for systemic economic reform.

Global demand for arable land is rising, making Africa a key target for large-scale acquisitions to tackle food and energy challenges.

The political popularity of the European Chips Act does not necessarily make centrally planned investment in chip manufacturing a great idea.

Increased restrictions on cross-border capital flows, under the guise of security and public order, are elevating the risk of global economic fragmentation.

With the RCEP, Asian and Pacific countries have created the largest and most powerful trade zone in the world. To prioritize economic growth, the member states have put aside political issues. This could serve as an example for Europe.

Global economic winds are shifting, and not necessarily in the way most people expect.

The EU’s latest AI draft legislation risks stifling innovation in Europe and opens the door to misuse by governments.

Instead of pushing for more free trade, some members of Mercosur are using it to protect their own industries. The rift may spell the end of the customs union.

This week’s Shanghai organization summit in Kazakhstan is likely to show once again that altering the Western-dominated world order is a very ambitious goal.

Popularity for free trade is decreasing. The WTO has failed to rein in China’s unfair economic practices since 2001, so there is no enforcement of international trade rules. This could be fatal for post-Covid recovery.

With irreconcilable war aims between the combatants, the conflict will drag into 2024 and inflict more damage to the global economy and long-standing security arrangements.

Even before the most recent disagreement, the U.S. had already begun drawing attention to a new question: whether China had been engaging in protectionism by manipulating its currency. The argument reveals confused ideas about what the U.S. wants: a dominant role for the dollar or an renminbi to please American producers.

In theory, the Eurasian Economic Union should be an important economic influence globally. Yet it has struggled to find relevance, not least because it has not managed to build true economic integration. Can it overcome the hurdles?

Although U.S. President Trump maintains that he believes in free trade, his policy tool remains protectionism. Europe could do more to change this. For example, engage in aggressive free trade or seek bilateral deals. President Trump would be left with few justifications for trade barriers, and Brussels would acquire prominence on the world stage.

Looking back on one of the most surreal and emotional United States election campaigns of the last 100 years.

Liberalizing trade across the continent would help African nations shape emerging ties with global powers like the U.S. and China.

United States President Donald Trump insists that trade wars are “good” and “easy to win,” but history tells otherwise. His plan to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports will hurt U.S. producers and will likely cost far more jobs than they protect.

Global value chains have been shrinking for a decade; the pandemic has only accelerated the process. Western countries are now racing to reshore parts of their strategic manufacturing and make supply chains more resilient. China, meanwhile, continues its quest for dominance.

Support for free trade is nearly a consensus view among economic experts. Yet amid growing threats posed by deglobalization, economists are failing to stand in its defense.

The European Union has placed huge bets on an investment program in Africa. Yet inherent flaws in its technocratic approach and a lingering paternalism toward Africa threaten the whole scheme.

American efforts to advantage its green energy sector may sting Europe, but Brussels has few effective options to respond.

As Europe’s leading economies grapple with dwindling innovation, eyes are turning to evaluate the impact of high labor taxes on growth.