Trade Agreements and Financial Services

The following sections are included:

• Preface

• About the Authors

• Contents

The following sections are included:

• Introduction

• GATT: The Foundations for All Trade Agreements
  • The Motivation for GATT
  • The Basic Principles
  • The Uruguay Round
  • The World Trade Organization

• Regional Trade Agreements Under GATT and WTO

• The Stages of Regional Integration

• Financial Services under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
  • Establishment of Financial Institutions
  • Cross Border Trade
  • National Treatment
  • Most Favored Nation Treatment
  • New Financial Services and Data Processing
  • Senior Management and Boards of Directors
  • Transparency
  • Financial Services Committee
  • Dispute Settlement
  • Consultations
  • Investment Transfers
  • Expropriation and Compensation
  • Arbitration for Transfers and Expropriation

• Advantages of NAFTA for Financial Services

• References

The following sections are included:

• Introduction

• Electronic Banking
  • Check Clearing
  • Increasing Efficiencies in Check Clearing
  • Electronic Payments and Inter-bank Networks
  • Retail Applications
  • Bank Management Applications
  • Expanding Scope of Applications

• Retail Banking

• Trade Finance
  • Letters of Credit
  • Bills of Exchange
  • Forfaiting
  • Countertrade

• Securities Markets

• References

The following sections are included:

• Introduction

• Background and Membership of the WTO
  • Current Operations of the WTO
  • Debate Surrounding National Sovereignty

• General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
  • Multilateral Agreement
  • Principles of Non-Discrimination
  • Commitment to Continued Liberalization

• Agreement on Financial Services
  • Scope
  • Specific Commitments
  • The Impact of Financial Services Free Trade

• The Question of Sovereign Regulation

• References

• Appendix 3.1 The World Trade Organization Members (and Date of Membership) as of January 2, 2002

The following sections are included:

• Introduction
  • Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
  • Origins and Membership of APEC
  • Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC)
  • Pacific Island Forum (PIF)
  • Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

• The Outcomes of Past Intergovernmental Meetings of APEC
  • Blake Island, Washington State, US, 1993
  • Bogor, Indonesia, 1994
  • Osaka, Japan, 1995
  • Manila, The Philippines, 1996
  • Vancouver, Canada, 1997
  • Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 1998
  • Auckland, New Zealand, 1999

• Meetings of Finance Ministers of APEC

• Slower Development of Binding Agreements

• Responding to the Asian Financial Crisis

• The Hanoi Plan

• The Keys to Financial Integration in Asia

• References

The following sections are included:

• Introduction

• Latin American Regional Pacts
  • Latin American Free Trade Area/ Latin American Integration Association
  • Central American Common Market
  • Caribbean Free Trade Association/ Caribbean Community
  • The Andean Group

• A Shift in Focus
  • Mercado Comun del Sur
  • Group of Three

• The Free Trade Area of the Americas
  • The Plan of Action and Capital Market Development
  • Tax Issues Guidelines on Capital Movements
  • Transparency of National Capital Regulations for Financial Services Firms

• Role of the United States in Leadership

• References

The following sections are included:

• Introduction

• European Monetary Union: The Ultimate Cross-Border Agreement

• Origins and Membership
  • Treaty of Rome
  • The European Union
  • Administration of the European Union
    • The European Commission
    • The European Council
    • The European Parliament
    • The European Court of Justice

• Banking Directives and the Single Passport

• European Monetary System and the Exchange Rate Mechanism

• The Euro
  • The Plan for Convergence
  • Members of European Monetary Union
  • Criteria for Monetary Union

• Impact on European Financial Markets

• References

The following sections are included:

• Index