The Evolution of the Global Trading Order

Vinod K. Aggarwal

Jeudi 19 mai 2016 à 18h15

à Uni-Mail, salle (100 places si possible, bloquer 2 heures)

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was a central element in the construction of the post-WW economic order, along with the Bretton Woods institutions of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.  With a host of successful negotiating rounds, trade liberalization proceeded on a multilateral basis.  Despite challenges to the multilateral approach in the form of regionalism and bilateralism, the GATT evolved into more institutionalized World Trade Organization (WTO) by 1995. Yet despite great optimism in view of the successful Uruguay Round that created the WTO, the subsequent Doha Round essentially foundered by the end of 2005, leading to speculation that the WTO has lost its raison d’être.  How were countries able to successfully negotiate on a multilateral basis for nearly 50 years?  What were the major accomplishments of the GATT?  Why has the Doha Round foundered? And what are the future prospects for a multilateral approach to trade negotiations?

Vinod K. Aggarwal

Vinod K. Aggarwal is Travers Family Senior Faculty Fellow and Professor in the Travers Department of Political Science, Affiliated Professor at the Haas School of Business, and Director of the Berkeley Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Study Center (BASC) at the University of California at Berkeley. He is also Editor-in-Chief of the journal Business and Politics, and Co-Chair of the U.S. Consortium of APEC Study Centers. He has been a visiting professor at INSEAD, the Graduate Institute in Geneva, Yonsei University, and the University of Geneva’s IOMBA program, among others. Dr. Aggarwal serves as Chief Economist for Frost & Sulllivan, a global consulting firm and is an elected lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In 1997, he won the Cheit Outstanding Teaching Award at the Haas School of Business for PhD teaching won first place for the MBA program in 2005. He is the author or editor of over 20 books, including the recently published Responding to the Rise of China.  Dr. Aggarwal has also published over 100 articles and book chapters on the politics of trade and finance. He received his B.A. from the University of Michigan and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Stanford University. Born in Seattle, Washington, he speaks five languages.