Lecture
International trade - a system of international commodity-money relations, emerging from the foreign trade of all countries of the world. International trade arose in the process of the birth of the world market in the XVI-XVIII centuries. Its development is one of the important factors in the development of the world economy of the New Age.
The term international trade was first used in the 12th century by the Italian economist Antonio Margaretti, the author of the economic treatise The Power of the Popular Masses in the North of Italy.
The advantages of participating countries in international trade:
The development of world trade is based on the benefits it brings to its participating countries. The theory of international trade gives an idea of what is at the heart of this gain from foreign trade, or what determines the direction of foreign trade flows. International trade serves as a tool by which countries, by developing their specialization, can increase the productivity of available resources and thus increase the volume of goods and services produced by them, increase the level of welfare of the population.
Many well-known economists were involved in international trade. The main theories of international trade are the Mercantilist theory, A. Smith’s Theory of Absolute Benefits, D. Ricardo’s Theory of Comparative Benefits and D. Mill’s Theory, Heckscher – Olin’s Theory, Leontiev Paradox, The Goods Life Cycle Theory, M. Porter’s Theory, Rybchinsky’s Theorem, and Samuelson and Stolper Theory.
Mercantilist theory. Mercantilism - the system of views of economists XV-XVII centuries, focused on the active state intervention in economic activity. Representatives of the direction: Thomas Man, Antoine de Montchretien, William Stafford. The term was proposed by Adam Smith, who criticized the writings of the mercantilists. The mercantilist theory of international trade arose during the period of primitive accumulation of capital and great geographical discoveries, based on the idea that the presence of gold reserves is the basis of the prosperity of the nation. Foreign trade, mercantilists believed, should be focused on getting gold, because in the case of simple commodity exchange, ordinary goods, being used, cease to exist, and gold accumulates in the country and can be used again for international exchange.
Trading was viewed as a zero-sum game when winning one participant automatically means losing the other, and vice versa. To obtain maximum benefits, it was proposed to strengthen government intervention and control over the state of foreign trade. The mercantilist trade policy, called protectionism, was to create barriers to international trade that protect domestic producers from foreign competition, stimulate exports and restrict imports, introducing customs duties on foreign goods and receiving in return for their goods gold and silver.
The main provisions of the Mercantilist theory of international trade:
The theory of the absolute advantages of Adam Smith. In his work “A Study on the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations” in a debate with mercantilists, Smith formulated the idea that countries are interested in the free development of international trade, since they can benefit from it regardless of whether they are exporters or importers. Each country should specialize in the production of the goods where it has an absolute advantage - a benefit based on the different costs of production in individual countries - participants of foreign trade. The rejection of the production of goods for which countries do not have absolute advantages, and the concentration of resources on the production of other goods lead to an increase in total production, an increase in the exchange of products of their labor between countries.
The theory of the absolute advantages of Adam Smith suggests that the real wealth of a country consists of goods and services available to its citizens. If a country can produce a product more and cheaper than other countries, then it has an absolute advantage. Some countries can produce goods more efficiently than others. The resources of the country flow into profitable industries, as the country can not compete in unprofitable industries. This leads to an increase in the productivity of the country, as well as the skills of the workforce; long periods of production of homogeneous products provide incentives for the development of more efficient working methods.
Natural advantages for a single country: climate; territory; resources. Acquired advantages for a single country: production technology, that is, the ability to make a variety of products.
The theory of comparative advantages of D. Ricardo and D.S.Mill. In "The Beginning of Political Economy and Taxation," Ricardo showed that the principle of absolute advantage is only a special case of the general rule, and he substantiated the theory of comparative (relative) advantage. When analyzing the development directions of foreign trade, two circumstances should be taken into account: first, economic resources — natural, labor, etc. — are unevenly distributed between countries, second, efficient production of various goods requires different technologies or combinations of resources.
The advantages that countries possess are not once and for all data, said D. Ricardo, so even countries with absolutely higher levels of production costs can benefit from trade exchanges. It is in the interests of each country to specialize in the production in which it has the greatest advantage and the least weakness and for which not absolute, but the relative benefit is the greatest - such is the law of comparative advantage of D. Ricardo. According to Ricardo, the cumulative volume of output will be greatest when each product is produced by the country in which the alternative (imputed) costs are lower. Thus, the relative advantage is a benefit based on lower alternative (imputed) costs in the exporting country. Hence, as a result of specialization and trade, both countries participating in the exchange will benefit. An example in this case is the exchange of English cloth for Portuguese wine, which brings benefits to both countries, even if the absolute production costs of cloth and wine in Portugal are lower than in England.
Subsequently, D.S.Mill in his work “Foundations of Political Economy” gave an explanation of the price at which the exchange was carried out. According to Mill, the price of exchange is set according to the laws of supply and demand at such a level that the aggregate of exports of each country allows paying for the aggregate of its imports - such is the law of international value.
Heckscher-Ohlin theory. This theory of scientists from Sweden, which appeared in the 30s of the twentieth century, belongs to the neoclassical concepts of international trade, since these economists did not adhere to the labor theory of value, considering productive, along with labor, capital and land. Therefore, the reason for trade among them is the different availability of production factors in the countries participating in international trade.
The main points of their theory were as follows: first, countries tend to export those goods for the manufacture of which production factors are used in excess in the country, and, conversely, import goods that require relatively rare factors to be produced; secondly, in international trade there is a tendency to equalize “factor prices”; thirdly, the export of goods may be replaced by the movement of factors of production beyond national borders.
The neoclassical concept of Heckscher-Olin turned out to be convenient for explaining the reasons for the development of trade between developed and developing countries, when, in exchange for commodities coming into developed countries, machines and equipment were imported into developing countries. However, not all the phenomena of international trade fit the Heckscher-Olin theory, since today the center of gravity of international trade is gradually shifting to the mutual trade of "similar" goods between "similar" countries.
Paradox Leontiev. This is a study by an American economist who questioned the theory of Heckscher-Ohlin and shows that in the postwar period, the US economy specialized in those types of production that required relatively more labor, not capital. The essence of the Leontief paradox was that the share of capital-intensive goods in exports could grow and labor-intensive be reduced. In fact, when analyzing the US trade balance, the share of labor-intensive goods was not reduced. The resolution of Leontief's paradox was that the laboriousness of goods imported by the United States is quite large, but the price of labor in the cost of goods is much lower than in US exports. The capital intensity of labor in the United States is significant, together with high labor productivity, this leads to a significant impact of the price of labor in export supplies. The share of labor-intensive supplies in US exports is growing, confirming the Leontief paradox. This is due to the growing share of services, labor prices and the structure of the US economy. This leads to an increase in the labor intensity of the entire American economy, not excluding exports.
Theory of the product life cycle. She was nominated and substantiated by R. Vernoy, C. Kindelberger and L. Wels. In their opinion, the product from the moment of its appearance on the market and before leaving it goes through a cycle consisting of five stages:
The theory of M. Porter. This theory introduces the concept of competitiveness of the country. It is precisely national competitiveness, from the point of view of Porter, that determines success or failure in specific industries and the place that the country occupies in the world economy system. National competitiveness is determined by the ability of the industry. At the heart of explaining the country's competitive advantage lies the role of the home country in encouraging renewal and improvement (that is, in stimulating the production of innovations). Government measures to maintain competitiveness:
A serious incentive for success in the global market is sufficient competition in the domestic market. Artificial domination of enterprises with the help of state support, from the point of view of Porter, is a negative decision, leading to waste and inefficient use of resources. The theoretical premises of M. Porter served as the basis for the development of recommendations at the state level to improve the competitiveness of foreign trade goods in Australia, New Zealand and the USA in the 1990s.
Rybchinsky theorem. The theorem is to state that if the value of one of the two factors of production increases, in order to maintain the price stability of goods and factors, it is necessary to increase the production of products in which this increased factor is used intensively and to reduce the production of other products intensively using a fixed factor. In order for the prices of goods to remain constant, prices for factors of production should remain unchanged. Factor prices can remain constant only when the ratio of factors used in the two industries remains constant. If one factor grows, this can occur only when production increases in the industry in which this factor is used intensively and production decreases in another industry, leading to the release of a fixed factor that becomes available for use with the growing factor in an expanding industry. .
Theory of Samuelson and Stolper. In the middle of the XX century. (1948) American economists P.Samuelson and V.Stolper improved the Heckscher-Olin theory, imagining that in case of homogeneity of production factors, identity of technology, perfect competition and full mobility of goods, international exchange levels the price of production factors between countries. The authors base their concept on the Ricardo model with the additions of Heckscher and Olin and consider trade not only as a mutually beneficial exchange, but also as a means of reducing the development gap between countries.
International trade - a form of exchange of products of labor in the form of goods and services between sellers and buyers of different countries. The characteristics of international trade are the volume of world trade, the commodity structure of exports and imports and its dynamics, as well as the geographical structure of international trade. Export is the sale of goods to a foreign buyer and exported abroad. Import - the purchase of goods from foreign sellers with import from abroad.
Modern international trade is developing at a fairly high rate. Among the main trends in the development of international trade are the following:
1. There is a predominant development of trade compared with the branches of material production and the world economy as a whole. Thus, according to some estimates, over the period of the 50–90s of the twentieth century, world GDP grew about 5 times, and merchandise exports — no less than 11 times. Accordingly, if in 2000 the world's GDP was estimated at 30 trillion dollars, then the volume of international trade — exports plus imports — was 12 trillion dollars.
2. In the structure of international trade, the share of manufacturing products is growing (up to 75%), of which more than 40% is engineering products. Only 14% is fuel and other raw materials, the share of agricultural products is about 9%, clothing and textiles - 3%.
3. Among the changes in the geographical direction of international trade flows, there is an increasing role of developed countries and China. However, developing countries (mainly due to the advancement of new industrialized countries with a pronounced export orientation) have significantly increased their influence in this area. In 1950, they accounted for only 16% of world trade, and by 2001, 41.2%.
Since the second half of the 20th century, the uneven dynamics of foreign trade has manifested itself. In the 1960s, Western Europe was the main center of international trade. Its exports were almost 4 times higher than US exports. By the end of the 1980s, Japan became a leader in terms of competitiveness. In the same period, it was joined by the “new industrial countries” of Asia - Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan. However, by the mid-1990s, the United States took a leading position in the world in competitiveness. Exports of goods and services in the world in 2007, according to the WTO, amounted to 16 trillion. USD The share of a group of goods is 80%, and services - 20% of the total trade in the world.
4. The most important direction of development of foreign trade is intra-firm trade within the framework of TNCs.According to some data, intrafirm international supplies account for up to 70% of all world trade, 80–90% of sales of licenses and patents. Since TNCs are the most important link in the world economy, world trade is at the same time trade within TNK.
5. Expanding trade in services, and in several ways. First, it is cross-border supply, for example, distance learning. Another way of supplying services - consumption abroad - involves the movement of a consumer or the transfer of his property to a country where the service is provided, for example, a guide service on a tourist trip. The third method is a commercial presence, for example, a foreign bank or restaurant in the country. And the fourth way - the movement of individuals who are service providers abroad, for example, doctors or teachers. The leader in trade in services are the most developed countries of the world.
Regulation of international trade is divided into government regulation and regulation through international agreements and the creation of international organizations.
Methods of state regulation of international trade can be divided into two groups: tariff and non-tariff.
1. Tariff methods are reduced to the use of customs duties - special taxes that are levied on products of international trade. Customs tariffs - is a fee charged by the state for the clearance of goods and other valuables abroad. Such a fee, called duty, is taken into account in the price of the goods and is paid, ultimately, by the consumer. Customs taxation involves the use of import duties to impede the importation of foreign goods into the country, and export duties are less commonly used.
The form of calculation distinguish duties:
а) адвалорные, которые взимаются в процентах от цены товара;
б) специфические, взимаются в виде определенной денежной суммы с объема, массы или единицы товара.
Важнейшими целями использования импортных пошлин являются как непосредственное ограничение импорта, так и ограничение конкуренции, в том числе недобросовестной. Ее крайней формой является демпинг – продажа на внешнем рынке товара по ценам, ниже существующих на идентичный продукт на внутреннем рынке.
2. Нетарифные методы многообразны и представляют собой совокупность прямых и косвенных ограничений внешнеэкономической деятельности с помощью разветвленной системы экономических, политических и административных мероприятий. These include:
Высокая значимость МТ для развития мирового хозяйства обусловила создание мировым сообществом специальных международных регулирующих организаций, усилия которых направлены на выработку правил, принципов, процедур осуществления международных торговых сделок и контроля за их исполнением государствами — членами этих организаций.
Особую роль в регулировании международной торговли выполняют многосторонние соглашения, действующие в рамках:
ГАТТ. В соответствии с основополагающими положениями ГАТТ торговля между странами должна осуществляться на основе принципа наиболее благоприятствуемой нации (ПНБ), т. е. в торговле стран — членов ГАТТ устанавливается режим наибольшего благоприятствования (РНБ), гарантирующий равенство и недискриминацию. Однако одновременно были установлены исключения из ПНБ для стран, входящих в экономические интеграционные группировки; для стран, бывших колоний, находящихся с бывшими метрополиями в традиционных связях; для приграничной и каботажной торговли. По самым приблизительным подсчетам на долю «исключений» приходится не менее 60% мировой торговли готовой продукцией, что лишает ПНБ универсальности.
ГАТТ признает в качестве единственно приемлемого средства регулирования МТ таможенные тарифы, которые итеративно (от раунда к раунду) снижаются. В настоящее время их средний уровень составляет 3-5%. Но и здесь есть исключения, позволяющие использовать нетарифные средства защиты (квоты, экспортные и импортные лицензии, налоговые льготы). К ним отнесены случаи применения программ регулирования сельскохозяйственного производства, нарушения платежного баланса, осуществления программ регионального развития и помощи.
ГАТТ содержит принцип отказа от односторонних действий и принятия решений в пользу переговоров и консультаций, если такие действия (решения) могут привести к ограничению свободы торговли.
ГАТТ — предшественница ВТО — принимала свои решения на переговорах-раундах всех членов этого Соглашения. Всего их прошло восемь. Наиболее значимые решения, которыми ВТО руководствуется в регулировании МТ до настоящего времени, были приняты на последнем (восьмом) Уругвайском раунде (1986-1994 гг.). Этот раунд еще более расширил круг вопросов, регулируемых ВТО. В него была включена торговля услугами, а также программа сокращения величины таможенных пошлин, активизации усилий по регулированию МТ продукцией отдельных отраслей (в том числе сельского хозяйства) и усиления контроля за теми направлениями национальной экономической политики, которые оказывают влияние на внешнюю торговлю страны.
Было принято решение об эскалации таможенных пошлин по мере повышения степени обработки товаров при снижении пошлин на сырье и ликвидации их на некоторые виды алкогольных напитков, строительное и сельскохозяйственное оборудование, офисную мебель, игрушки, фармацевтические товары — всего на 40% мирового импорта. Была продолжена либерализация торговли одеждой, текстилем и сельскохозяйственными товарами. Но последним единственным средством регулирования признаны таможенные пошлины.
В области антидемпинговых мер были приняты понятия «законные субсидии» и «приемлемые субсидии», к разряду которых отнесены субсидии, направленные на охрану окружающей среды и региональное развитие при условии, что их размер составляет не менее 3% общей величины импорта товара или 1% его общей стоимости. Все остальные отнесены к незаконным и их применение во внешней торговле запрещено.
К числу вопросов экономического регулирования, воздействующих на внешнюю торговлю косвенно, Уругвайский раунд отнес требования о минимальном экспорте товаров, произведенных на СП, обязательном использовании местных компонентов и ряд других.
ВТО . Уругвайский раунд принял решение о создании ВТО, ставшей правопреемницей ГАТТ и сохранившей его основные положения. Но решения раунда дополнили их задачами обеспечения свободы торговли не только за счет либерализации, но и путем использования так называемых увязок. Смысл увязок состоит в том, что любые решения государства о повышении тарифа принимаются одновременно (в увязке) с решением о либерализации импорта других товаров. ВТО не входит в сферу деятельности ООН. Это позволяет ей проводить собственную независимую политику и контроль за деятельностью стран-участниц по соблюдению принятых соглашений.
ГАТС. Определенной спецификой отличается регулирование международной торговли услугами. Это связано с тем, что услуги, отличающиеся крайним разнообразием форм и содержания, не образуют единого рынка, который имел бы общие черты. Но ему присущи общие тенденции, дающие возможность регулировать его на глобальном уровне даже с учетом новых моментов в его развитии, которые вносят ТНК, доминирующие на нем и монополизирующие его. В настоящее время мировой рынок услуг регулируется на четырех уровнях: международном (глобальном), отраслевом (глобальном), региональном и национальном.
Общее регулирование на глобальном уровне осуществляется в рамках ГАТС, вступившем в действие с 1 января 1995 г. В его регулировании используются те же правила, которые были выработаны ГАТТ по отношению к товарам: недискриминация, национальный режим, транспарентность (гласность и единство прочтения законов), неприменение национальных законов в ущерб иностранным производителям. Однако реализация этих правил затрудняется особенностями услуг как товара: отсутствием вещной формы большинства из них, совпадением времени производства и потребления услуг. Последнее означает, что регулирование условий торговли услугами означает регулирование условий их производства, а это в свою очередь означает регулирование условий инвестирования их производства.
The GATS includes three parts: a framework agreement defining general principles and rules for regulating trade in services; special agreements that are acceptable to individual service industries, and a list of obligations of national governments to eliminate restrictions in service industries. Thus, only one regional level drops out of the GATS field of activity.
The GATS agreement is aimed at liberalizing trade in services and covers the following types of them: telecommunications, finance and transport services. Issues of export sales of films and television programs are excluded from the sphere of its activity, which is connected with the fears of individual states (European countries) to lose the originality of their national culture.
Sectoral regulation of international trade in services is also carried out on a global scale, which is associated with their global production and consumption. Unlike GATS, the organizations that regulate such services are specialized. For example, civil aviation transport is regulated by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), foreign tourism by the World Tourism Organization (WTO), and shipping by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
The regional level of international trade in services is regulated within the framework of economic integration groupings in which restrictions on mutual trade in services are lifted (as, for example, in the EU) and restrictions on such trade with third countries can be imposed.
The national level of regulation concerns the foreign trade in services of individual states. It is implemented through bilateral trade agreements, which may include trade in services. A significant place in such contracts is given to the regulation of investments in the services sector.
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World economy
Terms: World economy