Preferential trade agreements and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) free trade area discussions with China, Japan, and South Korea are the topics covered in the current issue of the International Economic Review (IER), a publication of the U.S. International Trade Commission's Office of Economics.

The IER is produced as part of the ITC's international trade monitoring program. The program's purpose is to keep the Commission informed about significant developments in international economics and trade and to maintain the Commission's readiness to provide technical information and advice to policymakers in the Congress and the executive branch. The opinions and conclusions of the IER are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the Commission or any individual Commissioner.

The current issue January-February 2001 includes the following articles:

Preferential Trade Agreements and the Multilateral Trading System -- Does the current proliferation of preferential trading agreements (PTAs) encourage or impede evolution toward freer global trade? Does it perhaps even increase the likelihood of trade tensions between competing trading blocs? The article presents two models that show how PTAs could affect the multilateral trading system. One model suggests that global free trade may--or may not--be achieved through PTA expansion, depending on a PTA's membership policies. The second model suggests that the greater the degree of preference between the PTA and nonmembers, the less likely PTA members will be willing to undertake multilateral trade liberalization and the more likely nonmembers will be to support large-scale multilateral liberalization.

ASEAN Free Trade Area Discussions on including China, Japan, and South Korea -- Leaders from the 10 member countries of ASEAN met in November 2000 and agreed to initiatives aimed at promoting further economic integration in the region. Leaders from China, Japan, and South Korea also joined in these discussions in what has become known as the "ASEAN-plus-three" meetings. Among the agreed proposals was one to study the impact of creating an ASEAN free trade area that would include China, Japan, and South Korea.

In addition, the publication reviews U.S. economic performance relative to major trade partners, U.S. trade performance, and economic forecasts. Comparative economic indicators for major industrialized countries are also provided. An annual IER chartbook depicting trends in U.S. trade with major trading partners and regions is also included in the IER series.

The current issue of the IER (USITC Publication 3402, January-February 2001) will be available on the ITC's Internet site at www.usitc.gov. To request a printed copy, write to the Office of the Secretary, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW, Washington, D.C. 20436, or fax requests to 202-205-2104.

To be added to the mailing list for the publication, write to the Office of Economics, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW, Washington, D.C. 20436, or fax requests to 202-205-2340.