World Trade
The total world trade in both goods and services have increased tremendously in the past decades. Also, the total trade in services has increased as a proportion of total world trade such that trade in services account for roughly 20% of the total world trade. Factors which facilitated the growth of total world trade are privatization, liberalization, and the establishment of special economic zones in many countries worldwide. There are presently an estimated 3000+ various economic zones existing in both developed and developing countries (so-called transition economies). For some economists who are also religiously-inclined, they see international trade as a form of “God’s diplomacy” since the countries that have traded with each other usually do not engage in wars. Global trade has allowed countries to co-exist peacefully since international trade is mutually beneficial in terms of investments, infrastructure, higher incomes, and better standards of living.
But one must distinguish between “free trade” against “fair trade”, since free trade sometimes results in acrimony due to so-called “dumping” practices of some exporting nations. This practice is considered illegal by most international trade agreements in which products of an exporting country are sold in the international markets at below its domestic price. Some of the countries who resort to “dumping” are those with excess production and their local market cannot absorb the extra produce. Dumping usually results in distortions of world prices of the dumped products and represents unfair competition. So presently, the World Trade Organization (international governing body in global trade) vigorously promotes fair trade rather than free trade. Free trade can sometimes be unfair trade, right?