Regional Integration and the Asia Pacific

This text distinguishes between two processes of economic integration. One is the tendency for economies to be linked, naturally, by trade and investment, especially with economies nearby, and the other is the increasing interest in the use of co-ordinated policy initiatives to promote integration. The focus is on the latter process and the question of whether regional integration on international economic issues can contribute to the growth of its component economies. The book is divided into three parts. The first part deals with general issues such as the scope and development of reciprocal regional trade agreements (RTAs) and the conditions by which they can complement the multilateral trading system. The section also looks at the impact of these agreements on federalist structures. The second part of the book looks at four sectoral issues, two of which are currently covered in RTAs, foreign direct investment and financial services, and two new issues that to date have remained outside the normal rules of the trading system, international air transport and the environment. The third section examines the Asia-Pacific's formal and informal RTAs in separate chapters.
The North American Free Trade Agreement, the Australia-New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Agreement, the Asian Free Trade Agreement, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation group, and sub-regional economic zones are each considered. This analysis is supported by estimates of the welfare effects of unilateral versus preferential removal of trade restrictions.