Vinod K Aggarwal and Seungjoo Lee
Trade Policy in the Asia-Pacific: The Role of Ideas, Interests, and Domestic Institutions, Springer, 2010
This chapter evaluates the trends we have seen in the Asia-Pacific, with an eye to explaining the dynamics of the formation of trade policies and negotiation of agreements, focusing primarily on bilateral FTAs pursued by countries. As we suggest, it is not enough to look at national policies in billiard-ball fashion. Instead, our interest is in considering the interplay of ideas, interests, and institutions in the formation of trade policies. Only then can we understand how different subnational actors are maneuvering to achieve their desired outcomes. Simply examining the overall economic benefits of different types of trade accords is insufficient to understand the likely evolution of trade accords in the Asia-Pacific.
After first considering the trends we have seen in a more general fashion in Sect. 7.2, we consider the specific policies of countries as discussed by the authors of the case study chapters in Sect. 7.3. We conclude with our own perspective on the most probable trajectory of trade policy in the region in Sect. 7.4.