World trade regimes are based on reciprocity.
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is a global, multilateral IGO that promotes, monitors, and adjudicates international trade. The WTO shapes the overall expectations and practices of states regarding international trade. The main job of the WTO includes monitoring trade policies and practices in each member states. By 2012, 155 countries including all of the world's major trading states had joined WTO. The WTO framework heavily relies on the principle of reciprocity, with asks matching states' to lower trade barriers to one another. WTO also equalizes trade barriers with the concept most-favoured nation, which says that trade restrictions imposed by a WTO member must be applied to all WTO members.
There are also multiple other bilateral trade agreements and regional free trade areas that add on to the principle of reciprocity. Bilateral trade agreements are reciprocal arrangements to lower barriers to trade between two states and regional free trade areas are areas where groups of neighbouring states agree to remove most or all trade barriers within their area. Beyond free trade areas, states may reduce trade barriers and adopt a common tariff toward states that aren't part of the agreement.
Reciprocity is also important regarding the enforcement of trade rules. The use of reciprocity to enforce equal terms of exchange is especially important in international trade. Seeing that enforcement of equal terms of trade is complicated. states have to decide which practices of other states are unfair and take retaliatory actions. Successful retaliation requires good judgement of countries and a lot of trade cooperation, which is also based on reciprocity.
From the documentary film Black Gold, we can easily identify the dominance of world powers like United States and the EU countries. We can see that Ethiopia struggled and is still struggling to raise the price of coffee beans for their own survival. Though this film made the trade regimes to look like their more based on dominance, there is still reciprocity taking place. Country members and people at WTO did try to help Ethiopia with its problems, but it's rather ineffective. To summarise the trade regimes, you can say that they are supposed to be based on reciprocity but because it doesn't work effectively, some countries made it slant towards dominance.
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is a global, multilateral IGO that promotes, monitors, and adjudicates international trade. The WTO shapes the overall expectations and practices of states regarding international trade. The main job of the WTO includes monitoring trade policies and practices in each member states. By 2012, 155 countries including all of the world's major trading states had joined WTO. The WTO framework heavily relies on the principle of reciprocity, with asks matching states' to lower trade barriers to one another. WTO also equalizes trade barriers with the concept most-favoured nation, which says that trade restrictions imposed by a WTO member must be applied to all WTO members.
There are also multiple other bilateral trade agreements and regional free trade areas that add on to the principle of reciprocity. Bilateral trade agreements are reciprocal arrangements to lower barriers to trade between two states and regional free trade areas are areas where groups of neighbouring states agree to remove most or all trade barriers within their area. Beyond free trade areas, states may reduce trade barriers and adopt a common tariff toward states that aren't part of the agreement.
Reciprocity is also important regarding the enforcement of trade rules. The use of reciprocity to enforce equal terms of exchange is especially important in international trade. Seeing that enforcement of equal terms of trade is complicated. states have to decide which practices of other states are unfair and take retaliatory actions. Successful retaliation requires good judgement of countries and a lot of trade cooperation, which is also based on reciprocity.
From the documentary film Black Gold, we can easily identify the dominance of world powers like United States and the EU countries. We can see that Ethiopia struggled and is still struggling to raise the price of coffee beans for their own survival. Though this film made the trade regimes to look like their more based on dominance, there is still reciprocity taking place. Country members and people at WTO did try to help Ethiopia with its problems, but it's rather ineffective. To summarise the trade regimes, you can say that they are supposed to be based on reciprocity but because it doesn't work effectively, some countries made it slant towards dominance.