Question

What are the governing bodies and agreements that regulate international trade, and what is the scope of their oversight? What ethical issues does international trade create (refer to Barron, Chapter 24)? What obligations do US companies and consumers have when entering international trade and manufacturing agreements?

Answer 1

answer-

The governing bodes and agreements that regulate international trade are WTO, NAFTA etc. The WTO, created in 1995 as the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), is an international organization charged with overseeing and adjudicating international trade. The WTO deals with the rules of trade between nations at a near-global level; is responsible for negotiating and implementing new trade agreements; and is in charge of policing member countries’ adherence to all the WTO agreements, signed by the majority of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. Additionally, it is the WTO’s duty to review the national trade policies and to ensure the coherence and transparency of trade policies through surveillance in global economic policy making .

Scope of the WTO

Currently WTO has 153 members and 30 observers, most of whom are striving to be members (Members and Observers, online 2011). Moreover, the amount of trade engaged in by WTO members account for over 97 percent of the total world trad .WTO facilitate international trade without any barriers, without any discrimination by overlooking over member countries.

NAFTA agreement-

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) established a free-trade zone in North America; it was signed in 1992 by Canada, Mexico, and the United States and took effect on Jan. 1, 1994. NAFTA immediately lifted tariffs on the majority of goods produced by the signatory nations. Government of each country member overlook on the international trade activity of each country.

the ethical issues which can be created due to international trade the over utilization of resources of one country by another like A strong economy country can use cheap and abundance resources of another country which is poor. this can raise ethical issue for people in that poor country. another ethical issue is biases of heads at governing bodies for rich countries and settle disputes in their favor after all they are human too. ethical issues related to discrimination like banning items or not supporting poor countries in crisis like natural disasters or wars.

The obligations US companies and consumers have when entering international trade and manufacturing agreements that they should do business transparently. they should not exploit the labor or any other reources of another country overly. like NIKE did decades ago in Bangladesh by sweatshoping. US companies should provide products or services at right quality not decieving customers like showing gree products by providing non organic and GMO products. Consumers are also obligated to have full information about product or services to be attentive and transparent. they are also obligated to follow laws and regulations of another country like environmental laws . for example- Volkswagen has to follow environmental guidelines if it contract with another country's business.