Promoting institutional connectivity in the Asia Pacific region : a study of supply chain and trade in services

This paper analyzes "institutional connectivity", or the degree of seamless trade in services centering on the distribution sector. Foreign equity participation in mode 3 (commercial presence) of trade in services and business firms’ investment performance has been studied closely. Net economic benefits of transparent institutional connectivity in the wholesale sector have also been revealed statistically in the case of Japan’s bilateral FTAs with other APEC members. Given these results, APEC could work on establishing its own harmonized "service trade commitment table" with only the foreign capital participation as its simple policy restriction. This would surely enhance an APEC-wide, institutional supply chain connectivity.

State-business relations in the smaller gulf monarchies -- the role of business actors in the decision-making process

The Arab monarchies of the Gulf have been undergoing striking socio-economic changes caused by the ending of the rent-based welfare state model on which they had largely relied since the 1950s. In this perspective, this paper aims at examining the comparative role of local business communities in affecting the orientations and the outcomes of the policies implemented during the period of high oil prices in the 2000s. This paper pays a special attention to the impact of the Arab Spring on the state-business relations in two of the smaller Gulf monarchies (Bahrain and Oman).