International Trade and Finance
Brexit: Trading uncertainties for third countries
The simple answer to how the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s proposed withdrawal from the European Union (EU) will affect trade is increasing uncertainty. As we know markets do not like uncertainty nor do policymakers. All European Union (EU) trade partners are on the alert. However specific consideration is needed for developing countries. Brexit could significantly impact their economic development through its impact on their trade relations.
Reawakening Gambian culture through trade – and vice versa
Sona Jobarteh is traditional and modern local and global music-minded and business-minded. Above all she is Gambian.
Chambers: The first recourse for small businesses
Chambers are agile and reliable intermediaries between small businesses and public authorities. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted their central role of providing immediate support to businesses and advising administrations and public authorities.
Smart policies help Hungary’s MSMEs benefit from the fourth industrial revolution
The fourth industrial revolution offers a unique opportunity for countries with smart economic policies which aim to boost energy efficiency and sustainable transport to raise domestic value added and increase economic growth.
What is the TFA and who will benefit?
Against a backdrop of anti-globalization sentiment shuttered regional trade pacts and shifting geopolitics the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) flies in the face of the current news cycle. However the global trade deal that went live 22 February will smooth customs procedures and cut related red tape. Here’s what is in the deal and what it means for you and for global trade.
Interrogating Africa’s development numbers
In November 2010 Ghana Statistical Services announced new and revised gross domestic product (GDP) estimates. The estimated size of the economy was then adjusted upward by more than 60% suggesting that in previous GDP estimates economic activities worth about US$13 billion had been missed.
Growth for Rural Advancement and Sustainable Progress
Small enterprises make up the bulk of businesses in Pakistan. To achieve broad sustainable economic growth these firms must grow and create jobs for the increasing number of people entering the workforce. Livestock and horticulture – which account for 70% of value added agriculture – have particularly strong growth potential due to rising demand opportunities for climate adaptation and participation of women.
Supporting Kenya’s cut flower sector adapt to climate change
The cut flower sector is one of Kenya’s main exports and one of the largest employers in the country. Highly sensitive to changing weather patterns the industry is increasingly feeling the impacts of climate change. In recent years many flower farms have had to cope with a range of threats: heavy rainfalls prolonged cold weather and too high temperatures in the greenhouses. As a result scheduling the cutting ahead of key sales periods such as Valentine’s Day or Christmas is becoming challenging.
Women entrepreneurs breaking barriers
While entrepreneurs face challenges starting up businesses everywhere in the world women often experience an extra layer of hurdles. These include regulatory and cultural biases as well as lack of access to capital market information networks and technology. These barriers often mean missed opportunities to further raise growth rates and to create opportunities for more people.
The drive for ethical fashion boosts employment, raises standards
Can fashion help change people’s lives? At the International Trade Centre (ITC) we think so. Since it was launched in 2009 the ITC Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) has provided opportunities for artisans across the developing world including Ghana Haiti and Kenya connecting them to some of the world’s leading fashion houses.
A new world paradigm
In recent years free trade has come under criticism from populists who blame it for every lost factory job. In reality trade has been responsible for fewer job losses than automation a technological force much harder to reverse. So while trade has made for a popular scapegoat the truth is cross-border commerce has played an underappreciated role in producing the inclusive global prosperity we have enjoyed over the past 60 years.
A digital caravan for better and more e-commerce
In July 2016 the International Trade Centre (ITC) in partnership with DHL a logistics company and eBay an online retailed organized The Swiss Summer Route an ‘e-commerce caravan’ that travelled from Geneva to Zurich. The caravan in the form of a pop-up store helped shine the spotlight on e-commerce which for producers in developing countries can still be a huge barrier to exports.
Tackling harmful fisheries subsidies for a sustainable future
Trade ministers will soon be arriving in Buenos Aires Argentina for four days of intense negotiations aimed at endorsing a series of concrete deliverables and establishing the course of future World Trade Organization (WTO) work. A key question heading into the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference will be whether the organization’s members can clinch a long-awaited deal to ban harmful fisheries subsidies.
Onwards and upwards
The phenomenon of ‘Africa rising’ has been cited so often in the past few decades that it risks becoming a bit of a cliché. But the reality shows there is justification for this continued optimism. In July 2019 leaders of African Union nations took a decisive step toward realizing their economic aspirations with the formal launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The digital trade oversight
Two decades into the digital revolution the notion that the internet and mobile connectivity are transforming trade and bridging the digital divide is a staple talking point at diplomatic conferences on trade and development. Needless to say tariff cuts and digitalisation have combined to boost productivity and create a new breed of exporting firms especially among small and micro-businesses in developing countries.
Turning headwinds for trade into tailwinds
There is no doubt that 2018 has been a tumultuous year for global trade. It has been marked by trade tensions among the economies responsible for the majority of global exports and imports: China the European Union and the United States. And by threats to weaken or even dismantle the World Trade Organization the multilateral trade body.
Entrepreneurial lawyering for digital trade
In March 2017 I attended Geneva Global Goals Innovation Day to visit a pop-up shop set up by the EcomCoop a pro bono client of Sidley Austin’s Emerging Enterprise Pro Bono Program. Displaying colourful handicrafts from all across Africa this makeshift arrangement sought to familiarize potential customers with the products of African small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that soon will be available for purchase online in the European Union (EU) and the United States. I took advantage of the opportunity and bought a Rwanda-made wallet of cow leather tanned in neighbouring Burundi.
The ASEAN experience in using trade deals to slash trade costs
Southeast Asia has become an increasingly dynamic region in terms of international trade activity. This is true particularly as a coalition of 10 countries looks to become more integrated with each other as well as with a wide community of partners in the region and farther afield. Notably the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has pursued a multipronged approach to slash trade costs and border lag times both within their grouping and with other countries. This includes efforts to establish and strengthen an economic community; forge regional trade agreements with other countries; and implement global trade rules.