Article Reports for International Business

The Industrial Relations Act of 1990 contains almost all of the regulations governing trade disputes and industrial action. There are numerous trade conflicts going on right now between different nations all around the world. Trade conflicts exist, among instance, between China and the United States between North America and Europe. This essay will provide summaries and critiques of two publications on the North American-centered global trade debate.

According to the article "For Commerce Pick Wilbur Ross, 'Inherently Bad' Deals Paid Off," President Trump has nominated the former American billionaire Wilbur Ross to be the next secretary of commerce for the United States. However, Mr. Ross is being criticized for promising to fight against harmful trade practices between the United States and other countries such as Mexico. Some of the individuals have said that he used the same trade deals to accumulate the wealth he has today (Weimer, 2016). They also criticize President Trump for choosing him yet the methods Mr. Ross used to get what he has today do not rhyme well with Mr. President's view. Some of the bad practices mentioned include shipping hundreds of jobs to Mexico, therefore, contributing to the economic growth of Mexico rather than the United States. Trump highly condemns such practices. This results in the rise in the cutting of the production cost of the labor sourced from Mexico is cheaper thus companies earn more revenues (Gilbert, 2017). Also through such deals importation duties and trade barriers are removed hence the constraints to doing business are eliminated. Such a move denies the federal government revenue through taxes which has an effect on the economy and increases the profits of the companies involved in the trade. The major dispute here is a labor one where more jobs are generated in Mexico than in the United States thus rise in employment. The dispute here is over his stand on trade deals but speaking from a commerce point of view, he can create more jobs at home through his vast experience in signing deals. The solution here is looking at the experience he brings to the table and the changes he can effect from his experiences.

Analysis

In my opinion, the deals could benefit the importers as the importation duties will be removed hence large profits will be realized. It will also lead to decreased production cost for some companies because they will opt to use cheaper raw materials and labor from developing countries. Example labor from Mexico is much cheaper than the United States thus a company that has labor from a developing country such as Mexico is deemed to realize more profits are owing to the low production cost. The dispute between these two parties is purely an economic competition where both US and Mexico fear the influx of cheap labor. The United States imposing migrant restrictions is justified because it is preventing illegal movement of labor as this would disadvantage American workers who cannot be paid the same wages as the Mexicans (Gilbert, 2017). The implication of this is that developing countries, in this case, Mexico producing valuable goods will become much cheaper hence some companies may prefer to set up shop they and export their goods manufactured.

Conclusion

It is clear that international trade disputes exist at different levels and between different countries. Trade disputes may result from the exported and imported goods ranging from valuable metals, minerals, labor and agricultural products. Trade disputes if not well resolved can affect the economy of a country especially if it's a major importer of goods.

Article 2

International Trade Disputes

Introduction

Trade disputes arise when two trading countries have different laws and policies governing the particular trade. Currently, there are several trade disputes between various countries around the globe. There are trade disputes between North America and Europe, China and the United States among others. This paper will give summaries and analyses of one article on the international trade disputes between Canada and United States (Miller, 2016).

Summary

In the article Canada and United States are in dispute over softwood famously known as the lumber dispute, the author talks about solving of a trade dispute between the United States and Canada where the latter had claimed that softwood in Canada is subsidized by the federal and provincial governments. The article "Canada–U.S.A softwood lumber dispute" is about a dispute between how the prices should be set (Shongwe, 2017). The Canadian government and lumber industry dispute is, based on various factors, including that Canadian timber is provided to such a wide range of industries, and that lack of specification The lumber industry employs thousands and small trade restrictions result in job losses and also revenue. The dispute was solved through an agreement known as the lumber agreement. Both countries agreed that the conditions agreed upon would have effect between 7-9 years. The United States would lift its countervailing and anti-dumping duties charged provided lumber prices continue to stay above a specified range. Below the specified range, a mixed export tax and quota regime would be adapted on imports of Canadian lumber (Miller, 2016). On Canada's part, she agreed to enforce regulations, such as in the form of taxes on lumber exports headed to the U.S. In 2012 they agreed to an additional two-year extension until a new agreement is signed after Canada's election. The provincial governments of Canada, specifically, were asked to make changes to their pricing systems. Such modifications would allow for a non-subsidizing system.

Analysis

The author has presented his facts very well providing the numerical evidence where necessary. The lumber industry in Canada is controlled by provincial governments as they own most of the forest. This is very sad because the wood prices are set administratively rather than at a competitive market price. In the United States, softwood lumber industry is privately controlled, and the owners form an effective political lobby (Miller, 2016). The United States claims that the Canadian arrangement constitutes an unfair subsidy, and is thus subject to U.S. trade remedy laws, where foreign trade benefiting from subsidies can be subject to a countervailing duty tariff, to offset the subsidy and bring the price of the commodity back up to market rates

Conclusion

The lumber dispute was one of the greatest trade disputes whose effect is still felt today. Trade disputes should amicably be resolved to avert economic losses such as job cuts from escalating to huge losses and possibly termination of the trading relationship.

References

Cazzuffi, C. (2016, June). Internal Migration in Mexico: The Role of Territorial Characteristics of the Place of Origin. In 2016 APPAM International Conference. Appam.

Gilbert, D. (2017). Sarah Zukerman Daly. Organized Violence after Civil War: The Geography of Recruitment in Latin America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2016. 344 pp., $99.99. ISBN: 978-1-107-12758-6. Terrorism and Political Violence, 1-7.

Miller, E. (2016). From Log Export Restrictions to a Market-Based Future.

Peter, K. Y. (2017). The Investment-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. Am. UL Rev., 66, 829-971.

Shongwe, M. N. (2017, March). The Fragmentation of the Multilateral Trading System: The Impact of Regionalism on WTO Law. In Amsterdam Law Forum (Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 3-41).

Weimer, M. (2016). Reconciling Regulatory Space with External Accountability through WTO Adjudication–Trade, Environment and Development.