Section I examines the implications of production sharing in the context of preferential trade liberalization. Of particular interest is the case in which a free trade area which is clearly trade-diverting under traditional circumstances, becomes trade-creating with joint production. Trade in...

While the WTO process of multilateral trade liberalization encounters increasing resistance, in part because the most difficult issues have finally risen to the top of the agenda, market-based forces are contributing to international economic integration. One of the most potent are cross-border...

This paper discusses an approach to "open regionalism" based on regional production networks and component specialization. Component specialization, or intra-product trade, has been shown to be welfare-enhancing. It creates jobs and raises output by improving competitiveness. It is one of the...

This paper examines the implications of cross-border production fragmentation in the context of regional integration, using both general- and partial-equilibrium approaches. It shows the conditions under which fragmentation converts a trade-diverting FTA into a trade creating one. It assesses...