'Waltzing Matilda' - registrable as a trade mark or not? (first instance decision)

In brief: The Federal Court has ruled against an application to register the trade mark 'WALTZING MATILDA' for a variety of foods and associated services. It found that the Winton Shire Council and the Waltzing Matilda Centre Limited (also in Winton, Queensland) had the better rights to ownership of the Australian icon – despite them not having coined the term 'Waltzing Matilda'.

Progress report : 'Waltzing Matilda' trade mark case (appeal decision)

In brief: In our August 2002 Bulletin, we reported on the decision of a single judge in the Federal Court that the Winton Shire Council in Queensland and the Waltzing Matilda Centre Limited (also in Winton) had better rights to ownership of the Australian icon 'WALTZING MATILDA', based on prior trade mark use, than the original applicant for the trade mark, Brenda Lomas. Ms Lomas has now won an appeal against this decision in the Full Court of the Federal Court.

Trade commitments in education services : the need to move out of the current impasse

Education services is included as part of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). This inclusion, however, has not gone without its critics, and discussions about the liberalization of education remain distinctly polarized. This article seeks to bring a more balanced debate to the mix by presenting the case of New Zealand, one of the most liberalized World Trade Organization (WTO) Members in trade in education services. Through this case study, it is discussed how New Zealand has chosen to shape the growth of the education market and steer its developments by including controlled mechanisms as part of its regulatory framework.

Has international trade in saving improved US economic welfare?

Over the past decade international policy-makers have perceived the current account deficit of the world's largest foreign borrower economy, the United States, as a threat to global economic and financial stability. Yet, by bridging the US domestic saving-investment gap, capital inflow that matched the huge US current account deficit also enabled a faster rate of domestic capital accumulation than home saving alone would have permitted. Consistent with the theory of international capital movements, this study identifies and compares the respective contributions of domestic and foreign saving to US gross domestic product per worker over the two decades prior to the onset of the US banking crisis. By revealing that foreign borrowing contributed significantly to raising US output and hence living standards over this period, it adds a new dimension to the debate about global imbalances.

Endogenous transportation technology in a cournot differential game with intraindustry trade

We investigate a dynamic Cournot duopoly with intraindustry trade, where firms invest in R&D to reduce the level of iceberg transportation costs. We adopt both open-loop and closed-loop equilibrium concepts, showing that a unique (saddle point) steady state exists in both cases. In the open-loop model, optimal investments and the resulting efficiency of transportation technology are independent of the relative size of the two countries. On the contrary, in the closed-loop case firms’ R&D incentives are driven by the relative size of the two countries. Policy implications are also evaluated.

Trade liberalization and income inequality : a theoretical analysis

[No Abstract]