Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

This paper uses a computable general equilibrium model of the economy of Trinidad and Tobago to assess the effects of trade liberalization and terms-of-trade shocks on the real exchange rate and the overall fiscal position of the government. The model is also used to evaluate the implications of alternative tax policies designed to offset the increase in the budget deficit of the central government that results from both types of external sector shocks.

Exports and Imports --- Foreign Exchange --- Taxation --- Trade Policy --- International Trade Organizations --- Trade: General --- Business Taxes and Subsidies --- International economics --- Public finance & taxation --- Currency --- Foreign exchange --- Real exchange rates --- Trade liberalization --- Imports --- Value-added tax --- Tariffs --- International trade --- Taxes --- Commercial policy --- Spendings tax --- Tariff --- Trinidad and Tobago

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

This paper uses an applied general equilbrium model to decompose the effects of changes in trade and technology-related variables on wages of skilled and unskilled labor between 1982 and 1996 in the United States. The results indicate that trade-related variables (tariff cuts, improvement in the terms of trade, and the increase in the trade deficit) had little impact on the widening wage gap. Also, changes in total factor productivity had a small effect on relative wages. The major factor behind the rise in the skilled wage relative to the unskilled wage was differential rates of growth in skill-biased technical change across sectors. The paper also highlights the role that nontraded goods play in explaining the wage gap. Finally, the paper presents estimates of the effect of trade on wages by calculating what wage rates would be under autarky. The results show that expanding trade could actually reduce wage inequality, rather than increase it. The welfare costs to the U.S economy of moving to autarky (using 1996 as a base) are about 6 percent of GDP.

Labor --- Macroeconomics --- Neoclassical Models of Trade --- Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs: General --- Professional Labor Markets --- Occupational Licensing --- Labor Economics: General --- Labour --- income economics --- Wages --- Skilled labor --- Unskilled labor --- Wage adjustments --- Labor market --- Labor economics --- United States --- Income economics

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

The current round of multilateral trade negotiations-the Doha Round-presents an opportunity for countries to reap the benefits of trade liberalization. Unfortunately, a number of misconceptions about the likely impact of trade reforms has, in part, impeded more rapid progress toward completion of the Round. This paper addresses some of the most egregious of these misconceptions and presents results from IMF research that sheds light on these issues. In particular, this paper argues that: (i) developing countries have much to gain from their own trade liberalization; (ii) preference erosion could be significant for some countries, but it is not a justification for postponing tariff reductions; (iii) tariffs applied against agricultural products in rich countries actually harm developing countries more than subsidies; and (iv) a disproportionate share of agricultural subsidies in rich countries goes to large wealthy farmers.

Tariff --- Exports and Imports --- Macroeconomics --- Taxation --- Neoclassical Models of Trade --- Trade Policy --- International Trade Organizations --- Trade: General --- Personal Income, Wealth, and Their Distributions --- Public finance & taxation --- International economics --- Tariffs --- Exports --- Imports --- Personal income --- Export subsidies --- Taxes --- International trade --- National accounts --- Income --- United States

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

In recent years, many countries have successfully reduced their inflation rates to relatively low levels of 2 to 3 percent. The question then arises as to whether it would be desirable to move to even lower rates of inflation. The paper examines the benefits and costs of moving from low inflation to even lower inflation by drawing together recent work on this issue. Once a country has decided to move to an even lower rate of inflation, the question then becomes whether it would be better to achieve this objective through inflation targeting or price-level targeting. The paper critically reviews the arguments for both approaches.

Banks and Banking --- Inflation --- Labor --- Macroeconomics --- Money and Monetary Policy --- Price Level --- Deflation --- Monetary Policy --- Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs: General --- Interest Rates: Determination, Term Structure, and Effects --- Monetary economics --- Labour --- income economics --- Finance --- Inflation targeting --- Wage adjustments --- Sticky prices --- Real interest rates --- Prices --- Monetary policy --- Price stabilization --- Wages --- Interest rates --- United States --- Income economics

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

International trade theory has pointed out that factor accumulation could immiserize a country if it is sufficiently biased toward the export sector, or if it is biased toward an importcompeting sector in the presence of tariff protection. This paper analyzes the impact of aid, in the form of an increase in the capital stock used only in the nontraded sector, on real income. Yano and Nugent (1999) discussed this issue, but their analysis turned out to be incorrect. This paper demonstrates that whether aid in the form of an increase in capital specific to the nontraded sector reduces welfare depends on how aid affects the price of the nontraded good and on whether imports and the nontraded good are substitutes or complements in demand.

Economic assistance. --- Electronic books. -- local. --- International economic relations. --- Business & Economics --- Economic History --- Economic policy, Foreign --- Economic relations, Foreign --- Economics, International --- Foreign economic policy --- Foreign economic relations --- Interdependence of nations --- International economic policy --- International economics --- New international economic order --- Economic aid --- Foreign aid program --- Foreign assistance --- Grants-in-aid, International --- International economic assistance --- International grants-in-aid --- Economic policy --- International relations --- Economic sanctions --- International economic relations --- Conditionality (International relations) --- Econometrics --- Exports and Imports --- Inflation --- Macroeconomics --- Taxation --- Trade: General --- Trade Policy --- International Trade Organizations --- Labor Economics: General --- Price Level --- Deflation --- Classification Methods --- Cluster Analysis --- Principal Components --- Factor Models --- Public finance & taxation --- Labour --- income economics --- Econometrics & economic statistics --- Imports --- Tariffs --- Labor --- Factor models --- Tariff --- Labor economics --- Prices --- Econometric models --- Income economics