Dilemmas of International Trade

Dilemmas in World Politics

by Bruce E. Moon

In the post–Cold War world, trade is the new arena for competition—between nations, between groups, between ethical and theoretical ideas. Political economist Bruce Moon puts contemporary trade events—NAFTA, United States–Japan controversies, the Uruguay Round of GATT, China's Most Favored Nation status, the founding of the World Trade Organization—into historical and theoretical perspective with the British Corn Laws, the Great Depression, the Bretton Woods system, and the origins of the European Union. Economic theory, terms, and concepts are clearly explained and contextualized with those from international relations.Throughout the book, three central dilemmas are examined: the unequal distribution of income and wealth created by international trade, the tradeoff among competing values that trade requires, and the difficult interrelationship between economic and foreign policy goals within and among trading nations. Though internationally framed, each dilemma has ramifications at a variety of levels all the way down to the individual's role in the global economy—as a consumer, as a citizen, and ultimately as a moral agent.

Genres: Politics, Economics

224 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 1996

Reviews

[Brian]

For those interested in getting a handle on how international political economy works this is a very good book that will allow you to see the connections. The book is well written and covers many of the dilemmas faced with international regimes. These include NAFTA, GATT, MFN, and other organizations. It also includes an analysis of these regimes from a theoretical standpoint so the student does not get bogged down in economics. For those starting out in IPE this is a great starting point and well worth the time to read.