Latin America and the Caribbean in the World Economy 2013: A sluggish postcrisis, mega trade negotiations and value chains: scope for regional action

Incluye bibliografía.

The impact of aid for trade on the cost and time to trade The case of Latin America and the Caribbean

Includes bibliography.

Panorama de la inserción internacional de América Latina y el Caribe 2004: tendencias para el 2005

El estudio recientemente publicado por la División de Comercio Internacional e Integración de la CEPAL, estima que el 2005 será un buen año para el comercio de los países de la región. A pesar del contexto internacional favorable, persisten severos problemas de competitividad. Es preciso aumentar la productividad, impulsar la innovación tecnológica y participar pro-activamente en las redes internacionales.Entre las conclusiones del Estudio, se plantea la necesidad de actualizar la integración; reflexionar en forma estratégica sobre el vínculo a construir con China y los países del Pacífico; administrar los tratados de libre comercio para aumentar y diversificar las exportaciones; intensificar el ritmo de trabajo y coordinación con países en desarrollo sobre la ronda de Doha, e incorporar gradualmente las exigencias de seguridad en las políticas de competitividad, velando porque las mismas no se transformen en barreras proteccionistas (trazabilidad, inocuidad alimentaria y seguridad portuaria y de transporte marítimo).

El costo del transporte internacional, y la integración y competitividad de América Latina y el Caribe

La presente edición del Boletín FAL informa sobre algunos resultados de tres trabajos recientes o en proceso de ejecución relacionados con el análisis de los costos del transporte del comercio internacional de países latinoamericanos:1) Perfiles de Transporte y de Comercio Internacional de países latinoamericanos, de Jan Hoffmann, Gabriel Perez, y Gordon Wilmsmeier, CEPAL, Serie 19 Manuales (www.eclac.cl/transporte/perfil/bti.asp); 2) Globalization - the Maritime Nexus, de Jan Hoffmann y Shashi Kumar, en Handbook of Maritime Economics, Londres, LLP, por publicarse en octubre 2002; y 3) Port Efficiency and International Trade, de Ricardo J. Sánchez, Jan Hoffmann, Alejandro Micco, Georgina Pizzolitto, Martín Sgut, y Gordon Wilmsmeier, a presentarse en la conferencia 'IAME Panama 2002', noviembre 2002.

C-TPAT and AEO: new channels for world trade

This edition of the FAL Bulletin analyses the requirements of and the advantages offered by the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) of the United States and the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) programme implemented by the European Union.Supply chain security, especially for foodstuffs, has grown considerably in importance in recent years, owing to a combination of different factors which are emerging or becoming more significant, making the requirement of ensuring that a cargo is harmless increasingly essential and valuable during trade negotiations.In the field of certifying the harmlessness of a cargo, a number of private-sector standards have arisen worldwide, but the benefits offered by the C-TPAT and AEO programmes are well above those of their private-sector counterparts.As a first step, a comparative analysis of the programmes implemented by the two largest markets in the northern hemisphere is needed in order to provide to Latin American and Caribbean exporters the information they need in order to modify or tailor their installations and production procedures, to achieve greater market entry.

International transport database - Base de datos de Transporte Internacional (BTI)

Since late 1999, ECLAC has maintained an international transport database (BTI) containing statistics on foreign trade and associated transport modes for 11 Latin American countries. Although BTI was originally designed for internal use at ECLAC, it is now in a position to respond to external queries—something we expect to be of interest to FAL Bulletin readers.BTI was developed by consultant Joachim Fuchsluger, with cooperation from Gastón Rigollet of the ECLAC Statistics and Economic Projections Division. The work was supervised by Jan Hoffmann, of the Transport Unit. At the present time, consultant Gabriel Pérez is in charge of maintaining and updating it.

The Role of Technical Assistance in World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Negotiations

This issue of the Bulletin presents a brief review of trade facilitation negotiations from the specific viewpoint of technical assistance, capacity-building and special and differential treatment (SDT). Trade facilitation negotiations have focused on clarifying three articles of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT): article V (freedom of transit); article VIII (fees and formalities connected with importation and exportation); and article X (publication and administration of trade regulations). Although the stage of text-based negotiations has not yet been reached, the process of receiving and analysing proposals has made it possible to identify the aspects most urgently in need of correcting by means of trade facilitation measures. Consideration has been given to several formulas for the implementation of those measures and to how the associated technical assistance should be organized.

Rules of origin and trade facilitation

The contents of this article complement those of the recently published FAL Bulletin No. 201, which referred to the rules of origin included in economic integration agreements signed by members of the Latin American Integration Association (LAIA). On this occasion the relationship between rules of origin and facilitation of international trade in goods is examined. The contents of both this issue and of FAL Bulletin No. 201 have been taken from a more extensive document written by the same author, which is publication No. 28 of the ECLAC Comercio Internacional Series, Normas de origen y procedimientos para su administración en América Latina, of May 2003.

Competition Policy and Trade Agreements in the Region: Exploring Forums for Cooperation and Convergence

The similarities of competition provisions in integration and other intraregional agreements and the dissemination of this information could serve as a basis for progress in cooperation and convergence on this issue in the region. The negotiation processes that have taken place for these agreements have also enhanced communication between the national agencies concerned, leading to processes of learning and harmonization; these processes could be strengthened as part of the current efforts of administrating and implementing trade agreements. This edition of the FAL Bulletin reviews the information available in order to see how progress can be made on this issue on the basis of the analysis and bibliography of Álvarez and others (2006), and Silva and Álvarez (2006).

Defining trade facilitation at the international level

The present issue completes a series of articles which began with FAL Bulletin No. 167 and continued with FAL Bulletin Nos. 171, 175, 178, 181, 184 and 187. A compendium of these studies has been published in Spanish as Document No. 19 of the ECLAC Comercio internacional series (December 2001) under the title 'Facilitación del comercio: un concepto urgente para un tema recurrente'. The present issue of the FAL Bulletin summarizes that study.

Trade facilitation and Central American integration: Customs modernization

The development of trade facilitation and regional integration is closely linked to the efficiency of public services and the competitiveness of the companies that support export activity. The importance of trade facilitation measures has been emphasized in various issues of the FAL Bulletin. On this occasion the subject is be discussed from the point of view of regional integration, and a case in Central America is considered of particular interest. El Salvador and Guatemala, by integrating their electronic systems for obtaining export licenses, have been able to reduce waiting times significantly. In Guatemala, in December 2000, there was a waiting time of 24 hours, whereas in November 2004 the procedure took 1.5 minutes via the Internet. This issue of the Bulletin is based on research into electronic government initiatives related to foreign trade, which is being conducted by the International Trade and Integration Division.

Los centros de comercio exterior - trade points - y las nuevas oportunidades de negocios

Los Centros de Comercio Exterior (CCE) constituyen un esquema desarrollado por las Naciones Unidas a través de la Conferencia de las Naciones 'Jnidas sobre Comercio y Desarrollo (UNCTAD) y de su Programa de Eficiencia Comercial, como una alternativa para abrir el comercio internacional a nuevos empresarios. Es un instrumento al servicio de todas las empresas que quieran exportar o importar, con un énfasis especial en la pequeña y mediana empresa.

The potential of Aid for Trade to improve the infrastructure and logistics performance of landlocked developing countries of Latin America

Incluye bibliografía.

Panorama da Inserção Internacional da América Latina e Caribe 2014: integração regional e cadeias de valor num cenário externo desafiante. Documento informativo

A edição 2014 do Panorama da Inserção Internacional da América Latina e do Caribe, “Integração regional e cadeias de valor num cenário externo desafiante”, se divide em quatro capítulos. O primeiro capítulo examina os principais aspectos da conjuntura internacional e suas repercussões no comercio mundial e regional. O segundo capítulo apresenta uma análise da participação da América Latina e do Caribe nas cadeias globais de valor. Esse capítulo também analisa três aspectos microeconômicos centrais relativos à contribuição que a participação nas cadeias de valor podería representar para a mudança estrutural com maior inclusão. O capítulo três identifica diversos âmbitos em que a integração e a cooperação regional podem contribuir para fortalecer a integração produtiva entre as economias da América Latina e do Caribe. Finalmente, o quarto capítulo analisa as relações intrarregionais e extrarregionais dos países da Comunidade do Caribe (CARICOM), considerando a necessidade de fortalecer a integração regional no âmbito produtivo mediante o aproveitamento de outros vínculos além dos meramente comerciais. Também se examinam as diferenças existentes entre os países em matéria de renda, população e estrutura produtiva e exportadora, no contexto de uma acentuada vulnerabilidade macroeconômica.