No Access

US INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS

WILLIAM E. JAMES

Economics and Research Department, Asian Development Bank, Manila, Philippines 1550, Philippines

The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of the Asian Development Bank. The author is grateful to comments and suggestions received from Joseph E. Zveglich, Jr. and participants at a seminar hosted by the East-West Center, July 10, 2009 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Any errors are the responsibility of the author. The author thanks Shiela Camingue for her research assistance.

The author passed away soon after he completed this journal. For questions and comments.

Search for more papers by this author

https://doi.org/10.1142/S1793993310000123Cited by:1 (Source: Crossref)

Abstract

The decline in world trade volume in 2009 was the worst since the Great Depression. The United States (US) spread the global recession as a major source of external demand. US import and export data are examined to understand the repercussions, particularly for developing economies divided into preferential and non-preferential trading partners. A key finding is that US trade with preferential partners contracted faster than with non-preferential partners. Case studies of autos and textiles provide insights. A new global trade deal may be the way forward as the US will have to expand net exports to restore growth.

Keywords:

JEL: F1, F2, L6

References

Baldwin, R. (2008). Big-think regionalism: A critical survey. NBER Working Paper 14056, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts . Google Scholar
O. Cadot , The Origin of Goods: Rules of Origin in Regional Trade Agreements , eds. O. Cadot et al. ( Oxford University Press , Oxford and New York ) . Google Scholar
M. A. Cameron and B. W. Tomlin , The Making of NAFTA: How the Deal Was Done ( Cornell University Press , Ithaca and London , 2000 ) . Google Scholar
I. M. Destler , The Origin of Goods: Rules of Origin in Regional Trade Agreements , eds. O. Cadot et al. ( Oxford University Press , Oxford and New York , 2006 ) . Google Scholar
Emerging Textiles.com. (2009). Haiti's apparel exports boosted by new rules of origin. Country Report. 28 October. Available: http://www.emergingtextiles.com/ . Google Scholar
B. K. Gordon, Yale Global Online Magazine (2009), http://yaleglobal.yale.edu./print/5951. Google Scholar
W. E. James, Textile Outlook International 120 (2005). Google Scholar
James, W. E. (2007). Rules of origin in emerging Asia-Pacific preferential trade agreements: Will PTAs promote trade and development? In Duval Y (ed.) Trade Facilitation Beyond the Multilateral Trade Negotiations: Regional Practices, Customs Valuation and Other Emerging Issues. New York: United Nations . Google Scholar
W. E. James and M. Umemoto, ASEAN Economic Bulletin (2000). Google Scholar
K. Krishna and A. O. Krueger , New Directions in Trade Theory , eds. A. Deardorf , J. Levinsohn and R. Stern ( University of Michigan Press , Ann Arbor , 1995 ) . Google Scholar
A. O. Krueger, Journal of Development Economics 54, 169 (1997), DOI: 10.1016/S0304-3878(97)00032-1. Crossref, Google Scholar
N. Limao, American Economic Review 96(3), 896 (2006), DOI: 10.1257/aer.96.3.896. Crossref, Google Scholar
Matoo, A., D. Roy and A. Subramanian (2002). The African growth and opportunity act and its rules of origin: Generosity undermined? World Bank Policy Research Paper 2908, World Bank, Washington, DC . Google Scholar
National Bureau of Economics Research (2008). Determination of the December 2007 peak in economic activity. Announcement by NBER's business cycle dating committee. Available: http://www.nber.org/dec2008.pdf . Google Scholar
H. K. Nordas , The Global Textile and Clothing Industry Post the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing ( World Trade Organization , Geneva , 2004 ) . Google Scholar
Office of Textiles and Apparel (2009). Trade Data: US Exports and Imports of Textiles and Apparel. International Trade Administration. Available: otexa.ita.doc.gov/ . Google Scholar
P. Rivoli , The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy: An Economist Examines the Markets, Power and Politics of World Trade ( John Wiley and Sons, Inc. , Hoboken, NJ , 2005 ) . Google Scholar
Romalis, J. (2005). NAFTA's and CUSFTA's impact on international trade. NBER Working Paper 11059, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Available: http://www.nber.org/papers/w11059 . Google Scholar
United States International Trade Commission (2009). Interactive tariff and trade data web. Accessed on 29 June. Available: http://dataweb.usitc.gov/ . Google Scholar
Whalley, J. (2006). The post MFA performance of developing Asia. NBER Working Paper No. 12178, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Available: http://www.nber.org/papers/w12178 . Google Scholar
World Bank (2009). The financial crisis: Charting a global recovery. World Bank Weekly Update. 22 June. Available: http://newsletters.worldbank.org/ . Google Scholar
World Trade Organization (2007). Trade Policy Review-Canada. Report by Secretariat. Trade Policy Review Body, WT/TPR/S/179/Rev.1. 4 June. World Trade Organization, Geneva . Google Scholar
World Trade Organization (2009). World Trade 2008, Prospects for 2009. WTO 2009 Press Releases, Press 554, 23 March. Available http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/pres09_e/pres09_e.htm . Google Scholar