Caribbean islands face significant competitive disadvantages in trade because of a variety of factors — including the size and nature of their economies and their geographic location, which necessitates a reliance on maritime and air transport for most of their import and export needs, with 90 percent of goods being transported by sea. At the same time, maritime transport and … [Read more...] about Short-sea shipping: A solution to Caribbean logistics challenges?
Why fragmented integration hampers fragmented international production
When world trade consisted mostly of final goods or inputs used only in goods for domestic final demand, the relationship between trade agreements and trade flows was relatively simple: sign an agreement with another country and the trade flows between the two nations would most likely increase, end of story. With the emergence of global value chains, however, the story is not … [Read more...] about Why fragmented integration hampers fragmented international production
Latin American integration: an insurance policy against uncertainty on global market access
Over the last 30 years, in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), preferential trade agreements (PTAs) were the instrument of choice for moving toward more integrated markets. Although PTAs were successful in helping countries to move beyond the limitations of earlier, more inward-looking integration initiatives, their proliferation led to a regulatory architecture that has not … [Read more...] about Latin American integration: an insurance policy against uncertainty on global market access
Making it Whole: Integration in Latin America and the Caribbean
In a recent interview with a Brazilian newspaper, Chilean president Sebastián Piñera could not have been more precise when he summed up the challenges the region is still facing after more than a quarter of a century of regional integration. He argued that Latin America has more preferential trade agreements (PTAs) than any other region in the world and yet integration there … [Read more...] about Making it Whole: Integration in Latin America and the Caribbean
Growth Slowdown: The impact of external risks
As is described in detail in the half-yearly update to Trade Trend Estimates — Latin America and the Caribbean, the region’s exports grew at a year-on-year rate of 10.6 percent in the first quarter of 2018. This represents a downturn in comparison with the average growth of 11.9 percent of 2017, which marked the end of four continuous years of contraction. Growth in Latin … [Read more...] about Growth Slowdown: The impact of external risks