The World Trade Organization in the New Global Economy: Trade and Investment Issues in the New Millennium Round

Despite the temporary disruption to the process of multilateral trade liberalization at Seattle in December 1999, the work of the World Trade Organization (WTO) continues. This far-reaching book explores the trade and investment issues that have been outstanding in discussions at the WTO since the failure of the 1999 talks. The distinguished contributors combine structural and policy analysis for a comprehensive assessment of the trends, problems and opportunities demanding attention in multilateral trade negotiations. As well as discussing the principle items on the agenda for a renewed round of WTO talks, the authors focus on the issues surrounding foreign direct investment and urge trade policymakers to implement measures which will enhance flows of FDI. They go on to consider the viewpoints and relationships of the key triad members: the USA, Europe and Japan. They also examine the position of NGOs in their largely self-appointed role as paricipants in the WTO process. The authors believe that cooperative management of these and other important issues could bring greater harmony to the world trading system and overcome fears about the disruptive consequences of increased market openness. By bringing together the extensive research results of economists, international management experts and political scientists, this book should prove to be of immense worth to trade policymakers, economists interested in competition policy and international trade, and NGOs.