Antidumping as Strategic Trade Policy under Asymmetric Information

Trade liberalization under GATT/World Trade Organization (WTO) has been partly offset by an increase in antidumping protection, possibly due to the inclusion of sales below cost in the definition of dumping. This article investigates the domestic government's antidumping duty choice in an asymmetric information framework, in which the foreign firm's cost is observed by the domestic firm, but not by the government. We show that by designing a tariff schedule contingent on firms' cost reports and accompanied by a threat to collect additional information for report verification, the domestic government may not only be able to extract the true cost information, but also succeed in implementing the full‐information, governmental welfare‐maximizing duty. The antidumping framework within GATT/WTO may thus not only offer the means to pursue strategic trade policy disguised as fair trade policy, but it also helps overcome informational problems with regard to correctly determining the optimal strategic trade policy.     

Pollution havens,endogenous environmental policy,and foreign direct investment

In an increasingly integrated world economy, countries may have greater incentives to weaken environmental policy as disguised protection intended to give a competitive edge to local firms. This may generate pollution havens as firms relocate in response to different environmental policies. Foreign direct investment (FDI) weakens profit‐shifting policy considerations while increasing environmental damages but, at the same time, may provide external benefits. We derive conditions under which the FDI‐recipient country has an incentive to manipulate its environmental standard to prevent or attract FDI, potentially eliminating or creating pollution havens, in addition to examining the impact of FDI on the equilibrium state of the environment.     

Trade policy and industrial policy in China: What motivates public authorities to apply restrictions on exports?

This paper investigates the motives behind China's fiscal policy targeting exports. It relies on detailed data at the product level over the period 2002–2012. We analyze two major export fiscal instruments: export tax and export VAT rebate. Our results suggest that while pursuing many objectives simultaneously, Chinese policy used the two instruments in a complementary way with the aim of achieving their industrial policy and strategic objectives. Some are officially stated objectives such as promoting technology or environmental protection, while others do not appear in official documents, such as subsidizing downstream sectors. We also observed that China managed these instruments dynamically to address temporary shocks, for example to temper rising food price or to support strategic sectors sensitive to price competitiveness in the middle of the financial crisis.     

促进战略性新兴产业协同创新发展的公共政策研究——以江苏物联网产业为例

战略性新兴产业在协同创新发展和演进过程中需要政府建构科学的公共政策体系对其激励和规范。公共政策对物联网战略性新兴产业具有导向、统筹、激励和监管作用。以江苏物联网产业发展的公共政策为例，在分析其特点与不足的基础上，从完善国家层面政策体系、增强区域政策的可操作性、增列产业发展的专门政策，以及强化物联网产业发展的监管政策等方面提出了建议。     

Surfing the waves of globalization: Asia and financial globalization in the context of the trilemma

Using the “trilemma indexes” developed by Aizenman et al. (2010) that measure the extent of achievement in each of the three policy goals in the trilemma—monetary independence, exchange rate stability, and financial openness—we examine how policy configurations affect macroeconomic performances, with focus on the Asian economies. We find that the three policy choices matter for output volatility and the medium-term level of inflation. Greater monetary independence is associated with lower output volatility while greater exchange rate stability implies greater output volatility, which can be mitigated if a country holds international reserves (IR) at a level higher than a threshold (about 20% of GDP). Greater monetary autonomy is associated with a higher level of inflation while greater exchange rate stability and greater financial openness could lower the inflation rate. We find that trilemma policy configurations affect output volatility through the investment or trade channel depending on the openness of the economies. Our results indicate that policy makers in a more open economy would prefer pursuing greater exchange rate stability while holding a massive amount of IR. Asian emerging market economies are found to be equipped with macroeconomic policy configurations that help the economies to dampen the volatility of the real exchange rate. These economies’ sizeable amount of IR holding appears to enhance the stabilizing effect of the trilemma policy choices, and this may help explain the recent phenomenal buildup of IR in the region.     

The economic and strategic motives for antidumping filings

The Economic and Strategic Motives for Antidumping Filings. — This paper looks at worldwide antidumping activity during the last two decades. We examine the motives for AD filings by countries in an attempt to identify whether economic or strategic concerns are driving the recent upsurge in AD use. We begin by providing a comprehensive overview of the data on cases initiated in the 1980–1998 period. We then use nonparametric methods to identify motivations for the use of antidumping and find considerable support for strategic motivations. This suggests that the rise in AD activity cannot be solely explained by an increase in unfair trading practices.     

Does antidumping stimulate FDI? Evidence from Japanese firms in the UK

Does Antidumping Stimulate FDI? Evidence from Japanese Firms in the UK. — This paper explores which factors influence the number of Japanese firms in the UK and the level of employment and fixed assets in those firms, at a highly disaggregated sector level. We are interested in whether trade policy has had a role to play in the entry and expansion of Japanese firms. The results give some support to the hypothesis that antidumping action has acted as an incentive for Japanese direct investment in the UK. However, it has a relatively modest effect —antidumping cases can explain a maximum of 8 per cent of the expansion in employment by existing Japanese firms in the UK, while they appear to have no influence on the arrival of new firms.     

On the institutional design of burden sharing when financing external border enforcement in the EU

Illegal immigration affects not only EU member states adjacent, but also those distant from the Mediterranean Sea due to open internal borders and intra-EU onward migration. Member states without a direct influx of illegal immigrants may therefore free-ride on border countries’ enforcement efforts, leading to a sub-optimal level of border control when immigration policy remains uncoordinated. By applying a numerical example, we show that an expected externality mechanism leads to voluntary preference revelation with respect to immigration policy under several (but not all) scenarios, thereby avoiding strategic behavior in the regular negotiation process. This policy measure requires, however, the EU Commission to take on a very active role as moderator between member states (rather than as legislator).     

THE INTERNATIONAL ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM UNDER RESTRAINT

International imbalances, featuring as large current account deficits and surpluses in different countries are closely related but the adjustment mechanism that should restore equilibrium appears to be under restraint. These imbalances cannot be sustained without severe negative effects on the world economy. The different elements of the adjustment mechanism are complementary and it appears that the current state of economic policy and the absence of incentives to market participants in favour of portfolio switching inhibit an effective adjustment process. Institutional reform in the financial markets of the emerging economies, particularly Asia, appears to be an important prerequisite for the adjustment process to be effective.     

Endogenous timing in trade policy games: Should governments use countervailing duties?

Endogenous Timing in Trade Policy Games: Should Governments Use Countervailing Duties? - Trade policy under oligopoly is analysed in two multistage games with endogenous timing of trade policy. At the beginning of the games, the domestic and foreign governments choose whether to set trade policy at stage one or two. It is shown that in the subgame perfect equilibrium of both games, the domestic government will set its tariff (and production subsidy) at stage one and the foreign government its export subsidy at stage two. The domestic country commits not to use a countervailing duty in both games, and both countries are better off than when they set trade policy simultaneously.     

企业家战略规划能力的构成及其影响的实证分析——以广东省中小民营企业为例

本文运用实证方法证明了使命及愿景设计、战略目标设定和战略匹配能力对企业家整体战略规划能力具有显著影响,而环境分析能力对后者的影响不显著。分析了企业发展阶段、资产规模、战略期限、学习培训等因素对各战略规划子能力的作用。发现企业家系统、抽象的战略思维能力薄弱,忽视使命和愿景的设计,偏重现有业务经营目标的制定与实现。企业所处的环境复杂而不稳定,环境预测和分析的作用有限,许多企业仍采取短期或随机战略。     

Strategic corporate social responsibility of high-speed rail in China

This paper investigates the strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR) of a high-speed rail (HSR) firm when competing with an airline firm in a differentiated transportation market and the interactions with government environmental policies in the context of a Cournot–Bertrand comparison. We find that a standard CSR chosen by the government is lower under Cournot than that under Bertrand when both the marginal cost of HSR and product substitutability are low enough, while a voluntary CSR chosen by the HSR operator is always higher under Cournot than that under Bertrand. We also find that the voluntary CSR could be higher or lower than the standard CSR, depending on marginal costs, product substitutability, and competition modes. We then show that when the government imposes an environmental tax together with CSR activities, both the strategic CSR and environmental tax are always lower under Cournot than those under Bertrand. Finally, we show that equilibrium traffic volumes, ticket fares, consumer welfare, and social welfare are independent of competition modes with environmental tax.     

广西战略性新兴产业发展研究

从诠释战略性新兴产业的概念入手,分析了广西发展战略性新兴产业已具备的产业基础、技术水平、资源条件和政策环境,提出了科学制定发展规划、构筑高层次人才小高地、增强自主创新能力、构建新型投融资体系、加快园区建设、完善相关政策等有利于广西战略性新兴产业健康、稳定、持续发展的举措。     

改革开放以来新疆对外开放战略的演进与发展

新疆是我国对外开放的重要门户,改革开放以来,新疆在战略决策层面始终保持着融入世界的主流意识;在实践层面,一系列的战略转型和新定位使得其对外开放战略在驱动经济发展的进程中主要经历了三个阶段：在1970年代末-1980年代后期的起步阶段,利用口岸优势与优惠外资政策,突破封闭型经济,逐步形成“向西倾斜”的开放战略;在1980年代后期-2000年的战略营建和扩充阶段,“全方位开放,向西倾斜”与“内引外联,东联西出”的开放战略体系逐步形成;进入新世纪后,提升对外开放战略,优化对外开放政策,内外联动、互利共盈、安全高效的对外开放战略理念日益成熟,建成中国西部国际商贸中心的战略目标形成。     

Revenue enhancing tariff reform

Revenue Enhancing Tariff Reform. - Programmes of gradual trade policy reform have been included in most of the structural adjustment packages adopted by developing countries. So far the literature on piecemeal trade policy reform has concentrated on finding reform programmes that improve the welfare of a representative individual. Yet trade taxes are an important source of government revenue in many developing countries. This paper therefore examines tariff reform programmes that are both welfare improving and revenue enhancing. It first determines general conditions under which such a reform will exist and then considers specific reforms of both single tariffs and groups of tariffs. The standard welfare improving reform programmes — proportional and concertina reforms - are also discussed.     

不确定环境下的非营利组织战略反 应研究

市场导向和组织创新是非营利组织( Nonprofit Organizations,NPO)在不确定环境下作出的战略反应,据此论文构建了环境不确定性、NPO战略反应和绩效间关联的概念模型。应用问卷调查数据及结构方程建模方法对概念模型进行检验,研究发现：(1)环境不确定性对NPO市场导向和组织创新均有直接驱动作用；(2)组织创新在市场导向与NPO绩效的关系中具有部分中介作用；(3)市场导向和组织创新在环境不确定性与NPO绩效的关系中具有完全中介作用。研究结果不仅丰富了战略管理理论和市场导向理论,同时也为我国NPO在不确定环境条件下选择合适的战略以实现组织的持续健康发展,提供了有益参考。     

FINANCIAL AND MONETARY AUTONOMY AND INTERDEPENDENCE BETWEEN SOUTH AFRICA AND THE OTHER SACU COUNTRIES

The paper uses cointegration and error correction modelling techniques together with tests of weak exogeneity, and monthly interest rates for the period 1990 to 2005, to examine the degree of financial and monetary autonomy and interdependence between South Africa and the other Southern African Customs, Union (SACU) countries. The results reveal a high level of dependence of the other SACU countries' financial systems on South Africa's financial system, which suggests that a monetary unification with a single central bank (South African Reserve Bank) and monetary policy for the union is feasible.     

Strategic R&D policy in a quality-differentiated industry with three exporting countries

We examine strategic research and development (R&D) policy for quality-differentiated products in a third-market trade model. We extend the previous work by adding a third exporting country, so that the market structure is international triopoly. We show that the presence of the third exporting country affects strategic R&D policies. With three exporting countries, the lowest-quality exporting country gains from taxing domestic R&D and the middle-quality exporting country gains from subsidizing domestic R&D under both Bertrand and Cournot competition. As in the duopoly case, however, the optimal unilateral policy for the highest-quality exporting country depends on the mode of competition. Various cases of policy coordination by exporting countries are also examined.     

IS THERE POLICY SPACE TO PROTECT SOUTH AFRICAN AGRICULTURE?

The aim of this paper is to assess the amount of “policy space” available to increase tariff protection in South African agriculture. To this end, formal definitions for agricultural produce, actual import data, applied tariff data and bound tariff rates and tariff quota information were used to investigate the extent to which it is possible and feasible to increase tariffs. The analysis shows that in general the policy space available to South African agriculture is limited because of, among others, WTO binding and treaty obligations under the EU and SADC agreements. Furthermore, it does not make policy sense to increase protection on most other products.     

Scenario forecasting as an agricultural strategy development instrument

Methodological considerations that appeared in the previous issue of this journal are specified. The logic of socioeconomic threat formation is presented under an inertial scenario of agricultural development. The interdependence between improving the competitiveness of agricultural production, rural socioeconomic development, and nature management rationalization, which necessitates the elaboration of a comprehensive government policy, is demonstrated. A system of prognostic-analytical calculations is described; estimates are obtained to indicate a significant potential for increasing meat and dairy production and, hence, the strategic importance of the policy to improve the competitiveness of the Russian livestock industry. These findings may serve as the case for early development of a foundation for an agricultural and food policy, which is pertinent to the situation of approaching the “natural ceiling” of agricultural growth targeted at the domestic market.