Contrary to the recent literature that concludes that the GATT/WTO has been completely ineffective in promoting world trade, this paper furnishes robust evidence that the institution has had a powerful and positive impact on trade. The impact has, however, been uneven. GATT/WTO membership for...

This paper furnishes robust evidence that the GATT/WTO has had a powerful and positive impact on trade. The impact has, however, been uneven. GATT/WTO membership for industrial countries has been associated with a large increase in imports estimated at about 40 percent of world trade. The same...

This paper furnishes robust evidence that the WTO has had a powerful and positive impact on trade, amounting to about 120% of additional world trade (or US$8 trillion in 2003 alone). The impact has, however, been uneven. This, in many ways, is consistent with theoretical models of the GATT/WTO....

Corruption affects the composition of capital inflows in a way that may raise the likelihood of a currency crisis.Crony capitalism and international creditors' self-fulfilling expectations are often suggested as rival explanations for currency crises. A possible link between the two has not been...

The extent of corruption in a host country affects a foreign direct investor's choice of investing through a joint venture or through a wholly owned subsidiary. Corruption reduces inward foreign investment and shifts the ownership structure toward joint ventures.Smarzynska and Wei study the...

Is it true that bribery can alleviate red tape for enterprises? Not if bureaucrats can choose the regulatory burden and the red tape delay to extract bribes. The authors' empirical test finds that firms using bribes waste more management time dealing with bureaucrats. The business community can...

Other things being equal, countries with higher tax rates, more corruption, or more restrictions on capital account transactions attract less foreign investment. Taxes and capital controls hinder foreign investment, and bureaucratic corruption adds to those burdens rather than reducing them.In a...