WTO Discussions on Technical Barriers to Trade and Policy Implications
Nam, Sang-yirl

I. INTRODUCTION

II. TECHNICAL BARRIERS TO TRADE (TBT)
1. Characteristics of TBT
2. Standards and TBT
3. Major Researches on TBT
4. Technical Regulations and Multilateral Trade Rules

III. WTO DISCUSSIONS AND ISSUES CONCERNING TBT
1. Discussions in WTO Committee on TBT
2. Technical Regulations of WTO Members
a. TBT notifications under the WTO
b. recent TBT issues by country in the WTO
c. dispute cases on TBT issues in the WTO
d. recent TBT notifications by major country

IV. POLICY IMPLICATIONS

[APPENDIX] CHARACTERISTICS OF TBT NOTIFICATIONS DURING 2001-2004
1. Number and Share of Notifications by Major Country
2. Notifications of Major Country and Region by Legitimate Objective
3. Notifications of Major Country and Region by Product Classification
4. Notifications of Major Country and Region by Comment Period Offered

Along with the rapid reduction of traditional trade barriers such as tariffs and quotas, institutional factors including technical regulations have proliferated and increased their impact on international trade. Other factors that have impacted upon technical regulations include technical progress, and increased interests in welfare such as safety, health and environmental protection. Technical regulations are not dominated by developed countries or by some high-tech products. They are applied virtually to any product that is traded between countries and diffused from developed countries to developing countries in various regions like Southeast Asia, Central and South America, and Eastern Europe. (The rest is omitted.)

해당 사항 없음.

New movements in the Middle East region are adding to internal conflicts and natural resources (such as oil and natural gas), issues that often captures world's attention. One new big movement was made by Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a regional organization aimed at protecting political, military and economic interests of six nations in the Gulf region including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE. Recently, GCC is deepening internal integration by realizing a customs union and drafting framework for the introduction of a single currency. At the same time, GCC is advancing external integration by promoting trade agreements with the world's main traders. So far GCC has concluded a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Lebanon and some progress is being made on FTA negotiations with China (the GCC's biggest trade partner), India and Jordan. (The rest is omitted.)

없음

India is getting worldwide attention for its remarkable current economic growth which is partly driven by its active reform and opening economic policy after the foreign exchange crisis in July 1991. Since then, India has achieved a more than average 6 percent economic growth and developed a more solid and sound economic structure. Its monsoon dependent agriculture sector decreased its proportion in overall economy to less than 20 percent, while the IT-led service sector assumed about 55% of India's total GDP. (The rest is omitted.)

Executive Summary

I. Introduction

II. China - India Relations
1. Introduction
2. Bilateral Relations between China and India
3. Domestic Factors in Chinese Foreign Policy Towards India
4. Economic Cooperation between China and India
5. Concluding Remarks

III. Japan - India Relations
1. Introduction
2. Japan's Foreign Policy Towards India
3. Institutional and Economic Cooperation between Japan and India
4. Concluding Remarks

IV. ASEAN - India Relations
1. Introduction
2. Institutional Arrangements between ASEAN and India
3. Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and India
4. Concluding Remarks

V. EU - India Relations
1. Introduction
2. Bilateral Meetings of EU and India
3. EU's Foreign Policy towards India
4. Economic Coopearation between the EU and India
5. Concluding Remarks

VI. U.S. - India Relations
1. Introduction
2. Historical Context of the U.S. - India Relations
3. Institutional and Economic Cooperation between the U.S. and India
4. Concluding Remarks

VII. Conclusion

References

The Indian economy because of its has been slowly but steadily reforming by opening up their economy. This reform process is responsible for the sustained an average rate of growth of about 6percent over the past two decades. (The rest is omitted.)

Executive Summary

I. Introduction

II. Literature Review
1. Natural Resources and Economic Growth
2. Governance and Economic Growth

III. How Do Natural Resources Affect Governance in Africa?

IV. Data and Method
1. Data Description
2. Method

V. Empirical Results
1. Natural Resource and Economic Growth
2. Channels of Resource Curse to Economic Growth

VI. Conclusion

Appendix: Data and Sources

References

Contrary to conventional thoughts, development economists have provided solid evidence that abundance in natural resources has worked as a curse for economic growth. This finding is shortly called 'resource curse hypothesis'. (The rest is omitted.)

In East Asia, efforts to integrate the regional economy were blocked by several factors including political power games, security balancing, unsettled historical grievance, and different developmental stages. However, the painful economic crisis in 1997 brought up the need for deeper economic integration within the region. Recently FTAs are on the rise in East Asia as an alternative for the multilateral trading system. (The rest is omitted.)

Executive Summary

I. Introduction

II. Brief Literature Review
1. Financial Consolidation outside Japan
2. Financial Consolidation in Japan
3. Efficiency of Banks

III. Recent Changes in Japanese Bank Consolidation

IV. The Non-parametric Methodology
1. Efficiency Measurement Concept
2. Data Envelope Analysis
3. The Data

V. Estimation Results
1. Estimation Results
2. Remaining Issues

VI. Conclusions

This paper examines the technical efficiency implications of Japanese city banks to evaluate their pre- and post-consolidation efficiency. Using a sample from the period of 1999 to 2003, we consider questions such as whether efficiency improved after consolidation and whether consolidation of two weak banks created a strong bank. (The rest is omitted.)

Executive Summary

I. Introduction

II. Banking System and Related Literature
1. Bank Consolidations
2. Related Literature in the Banking Sector
3. Hypotheses
4. Related Literature on Bank Consolidation

III. The Non-parametric Methodology
1. Efficiency Measurement Concept
2. Data Envelope Analysis
3. The Data and Specification of Bank Production

IV. Estimation Results

V. Conclusions

This paper investigates how the Korean banking sector has published reform, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions of banks. It examines the technical efficiency implications of Korean banks to evaluate their pre- and post-consolidation efficiency. (The rest is omitted.)

없음.

This study deals with various issues related to the treatment of Russia's Soviet-era Ruble-denominated claims to developing countries. When the former Soviet Union broke up in 1992, Russian Federation succeeded with all external claims as well as external debts of the former Soviet Union. Russia's Soviet-era credits rendered to quite a few developing countries were largely military-related loans and mostly denominated in "Soviet" Ruble. The exchange rate between Soviet Ruble and US dollar used in original loan contracts committed before 1992 was unrealistically set high at 0.6 Soviet Ruble per US dollar, so the repayment burden of the Soviet-era Ruble denominated debts converted into US dollars using the exchange rate would be enormous and obviously unacceptable to developing poor debtor countries.
Besides the exchange rate issue, most of debtor countries are poor developing countries with heavy debt burden, sometimes unsustainable, and so many of those countries have actually approached the Paris Club for debt relief. According to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Russia and the Paris Club member countries signed at September 17, 1997, the new member to the Club, Russian Federation, has agreed to give upfront discount of 70 to 80 percent of its all Soviet-era Ruble-denominated claims to developing countries, including interest arrears, before applying the standard terms of debt treatments in the context of Paris Club debt restructuring. Instead, Russia's claims would be converted into US dollar by using the contracted exchange rate of 0.6 Soviet Ruble per US dollar.
This study analyzed the cases of eighteen countries that have gone through bilateral debt negotiations with Russian Federation on the treatment of Soviet-era Ruble-denominated debts. Ten of these countries have been eligible for the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative under the auspices of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Under the Initiative, an HIPC country that has successfully undergone IMF-supported reform programs is expected to receive debt relief under Cologne terms of more than 90 percent cancellation in net present value terms of debts contracted before the country-specific cut-off date. Russian Federation, as a member of the Paris Club, is also required to provide comparable treatment in the process of reaching bilateral agreement with HIPC countries. These HIPC countries are, as of November 2004, Ethiopia, Mali, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Madagascar, Tanzania, Zambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, and São Tomé Principe.
On the other hand, the Soviet-era Ruble-denominated debts owed by non-HIPC countries, which have already approached the Paris Club at least once, may not be qualified for the Initiative's debt relief under Cologne terms. But the MOU on the Soviet-era Ruble-denominated debt treatment would be applied in default. The six non-HIPC countries covered in this study are Vietnam, Yemen, Cambodia, Iraq, Angola and Algeria.
The last group of countries that do not yet have experience in debt restructuring with the Paris Club would need to make bilateral negotiations with Russia on identifying the amount, maturities, and other terms of debts, the conversion rate of Soviet Ruble into US dollars, the cancellation rate applied, etc. This study reviewed the cases of Lao People's Democratic Republic and Mongolia.
Having reviewed various cases of bilateral debt negotiations between Russian Federation and developing countries on the treatment of Soviet-era Ruble-denominated debts, this study has cautiously touched the North Korean case. As South Korea currently has claims to Russia of about 1.6 billion dollars, Russia has continuously proposed that South Korean claims to Russia would be exchanged in an appropriate way with Russian claims to North Korea to end up with South Korean claims to North Korea. In order to assess the economics of the debt exchange scenario, one needs to solve potential problems associated with the intrinsic nature of Soviet-era Ruble-denominated debts.
According to the OECD, if the contracted exchange rate of 0.6 Soviet Ruble per US dollar were to be used, the Russian claims to North Korea at end-1993 would amount to about 6.2 billion dollars. The amount would likely to increase to a considerably higher number as of today since North Korea could not service most of principal and accumulating interest payments due to economic difficulties experienced by North Korea in the past dozen years. Should the terms and conditions concluded from the bilateral debt negotiations between Russian Federation and Lao People's Democratic Republic be applied to the North Korea case, as an explanatory example, about 75% of the 6.2 billion dollars in net present value terms would be forgiven. The forgiveness would increase to more than 90% in net present value terms if North Korea would be able to get comparable treatments under the enhanced HIPC debt initiative, which is however unlikely. This study would hopefully be able to give readers some insights on this issue of the treatments of Russia's Soviet-era Ruble-denominated Claims to North Korea.