This quote contains two separate policy suggestions: (1) Trade barriers insulate production and welfare from any adverse responses to costly environmental restrictions. (2) Banning multinationals would insulate production and welfare from any adverse effects of costly environmental restrictions....

The basic gains-from-trade theorem makes a stark comparison between completely free trade and complete autarky. This paper is motivated by recent evidence that trade has greatly expanded on the extensive margin (aka fragmentation, offshoring) by adding newly traded goods and services and that...

The US-Mexico free-trade debate included some theoretical assertions that were then used as arguments against trade and investment liberalization. (1) Trade liberalization increases the degree to which production is internationally relocated in response to environmental restrictions...