Patent

Summary of Patent

A grant issued by a governmental authority to an inventor permitting, for a fixed number of years, an exclusive right to the invention. The grant includes the prerogative of preventing others from making, using, or selling the invention covered. Through various […]

Cartel

Summary of Cartel

An alliance among firms in the same line of business aimed at controlling or dominating their field on an international basis.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Definition of Cartel In accordance with the work A Dictionary of Law, this is a description of Cartel : […]

Special Drawing Rights

Summary of Special Drawing Rights

An artificial currency unit created by the international monetary Fund (read this and related legal terms for further details), or IMF, to argument international reserves. The expansion of world trade following World War II necessitated an expansion in […]

Joint Venture

Summary of Joint Venture

A business enterprise with more than one equity participant; for example, an agreement between a German firm and a U.S. firm to capitalize jointly a new factory in Venezuela. Many countries impose restrictions on joint ventures; these restrictions may take the form […]

Trade Balance

J-Curve and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of J-Curve: The expected adjustment path in a country's trade balance following a currency depreciation or devaluation. Because a change in the […]

Technology

Technology and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Technology: A method for convening resources into goods and services. Introduction This entry provides an overview of the legal framework of […]

Competitiveness

Competitiveness and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Competitiveness: The ability of a nation or firm to sell competitive goods or services in international trade. Several aspects of […]

Technology Transfer

Technology Transfer and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Technology Transfer: The diffusion of practical knowledge from one enterprise, institution or country to another. Technology may be […]

Trade Policy

Diplomacy and International Trade (London, 1994) "Today, the generally accepted view (at least on the part of most states) is that trade, and particularly free trade, is good, notwithstanding the conflicts (and bouts of protectionism) that arise between individual states and between […]

Economies of Scale

Economies of Scale and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Economies of Scale: (Also known as increasing returns to scale.) Cost savings that occur in production processes where higher output […]

Oligopoly

Summary of Oligopoly

Literally, a market in which there are only a few sellers of a given product or service. Under oligopolistic conditions, no one seller can establish market prices, except in concert with the other suppliers; if such concerted action develops, the suppliers are operating […]

Import Substitution

Summary of Import Substitution

The act of eliminating imports of a given product by commencing production locally, often accompanied by controls such as increased duties, quotas, or outright bans to discourage or prevent continued foreign imports. This approach is fairly common on the part […]

Devaluation

Summary of Devaluation

The official reduction of the value of a nation's money in relation to a standard (usually gold), special drawing rights, or the U.S. dollar. Inasmuch as all currencies are ultimately valued in terms of some standard, devaluation results in the conscious increase […]

Competition Policy

Competition Policy and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Competition Policy: A broad category encompassing antitrust and other policies to remedy the imperfectly competitive nature of key […]

Arbitrage

Summary of Arbitrage

The practice whereby foreign exchange or commodities are purchased in one market at lower cost and rapidly traded off in another, higher cost market. For example, if the pound sterling sells for $1.50 in Paris, but only $1.45 in New York, an arbitrageur could buy […]

Barter

Summary of Barter

A direct exchange of products without cash. In some cases, a third party is brought into the transaction to dispose of some or all of the goods in a third country; this practice is known as switch trading. See Countertrade.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Barter […]

Innovation

Innovation and the Laws of International Trade The relationship between antitrust law and intellectual property Intellectual Property and Competition Law Three general principles When antitrust concerns arise The three markets The horizontal/vertical distinction Rule of […]

Turnover

Summary of Turnover

The rate at which sales occur, relative to the capital employed. For example, if sales are one million dollars, and capital employed is one hundred thousand, the capital turnover is ten.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Turnover and International Trade Economy […]

Liberalism

The Liberals While the adjetive of the term means "Marked by generosity", a used definition of liberal regards the person who is open-minded or not strict in the observance of orthodox, traditional, or established forms or ways. Earl Killian thinks that a liberal is the person […]

Fair Trade

Fair Trade and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Fair Trade: International trade involving shipments that do not benefit from government assistance. Fair trade –and the related concept of unfair […]

ECU

Ecu Summary of Ecu

The European Monetary System is considered here.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

ECU and International Trade Economy ECU (European Currency Unit) and Europe There is an entry on ecu (european currency unit) in the European legal encyclopedia. ECU and the […]

Industrial Policy

Industrial Policy and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Industrial Policy: A program of selective government interventions designed to change the sectoral composition of a country's economy […]

Protectionism

Protectionism Definition Protectionism may be defined as government policies that favor domestic products over imported goods. The debate between protectionism and free trade has been a continuing issue in United States politics. Meanings For information on: * systematic protectionism […]

Balance of Payments

Balance Of Payments Summary of Balance Of Payments

The sum owed to or by a nation as the result of its international transactions during a given time period, usually one year. The balance of payments is calculated by subtracting the nation's total payments to foreigners from total […]

Terms of Trade

Summary of Terms of Trade An export-import price ratio derived by dividing indices of export prices by indices of import prices. For example, when export indices are 105 percent of a base period, and import indices are 98 percent of the same base period, then the terms of trade […]

Consortium

Summary of Consortium

A multiparty commercial undertaking, differing from a joint venture by virtue of the comparatively large number of participants.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Consortium and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, […]

Cost of Capital

Cost of Capital and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Cost of Capital: For any given level of corporate risk, the cost of capital faced by f1rn1s in a given country –a key element of their […]

Trademark

A device, symbol, or word used by a firm to distinguish its products from those of other manufacturers. The object of trademarks is to permit brand identification of products, which may permit a more ready market acceptance of current and new products. Trademarks are protected in the United […]

Globalization

Globalization Further Reading A concise encyclopedia of the United Nations (including Globalization , H Volger, KA Annan -2010) The Oxford Handbook on the United Nations (TG Weiss – 2007) International Law: A Dictionary (including Globalization , Boczek, Boleslaw Adam -2005) Globalization […]

Free Trade

Introduction Free Trade, interchange of commodities across political frontiers without restrictions such as tariffs, quotas, or foreign exchange controls. This economic policy contrasts with protectionist policies that use such restrictions to protect or stimulate domestic industries. See […]

Cabotage

Summary of Cabotage

Literally, coastwise navigation, generally used to denote the proscription of foreign flag vessels in a nation's coastwise trade. Since an act of Congress in 1817 (2 Stat. 351), the coastwise trade of the United States has been reserved exclusively to American […]

Level Playing Field

Level Playing Field and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Level Playing Field: A concept or slogan employed by those calling for efforts to secure both free trade and fair trade. The term alludes […]

Multilateralism

Multilateralism and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Multilateralism: An approach to trade policy focusing on multilateral negotiations (as opposed to bilateral negotiations or regional trade […]

Laissez-faire

Laissez Faire Summary of Laissez Faire

A doctrine that government should refrain from any form of trade regulation, leaving productivity and distribution of wealth purely to market forces and individual industry. The concept arose around the beginning of the eighteenth century in France, […]

Retaliation

Beggar- Thy-Neighbor Policy and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Beggar- Thy-Neighbor Policy: Unilateral measures taken by a country to improve internal economic conditions –such as through […]

Trade Secret

Trade Secret and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Trade Secret: A form of industrial property (Sec. I). Refers to a non-patented process, mechanism, or formula, known only to its owner, that […]

Trade Barrier

Summary of Trade Barrier

Constraints upon the exchange of goods among nations imposed by governments; such constraints are manifested in the form of tariffs, quotas, exchange controls, and a variety of so-called nontariff barriers. Barriers usually arise to protect domestic industries, […]

Repatriation

Summary of Repatriation

The transfer of investment proceeds or the return of capital from a foreign country back to the home country of the investor.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Repatriation and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, […]

Vertical Integration

Summary of Vertical Integration

Also known as vertical expansion, the incorporation into a business or economy of earlier or subsequent stages in the channel of production. For example, a chemical producer may undertake (backward) vertical integration by producing its own petroleum as raw […]

Customary International Law

Hello Customary International Law Customary international law applies in international law in case of absence of a treaty. J. L. Brierly, in "The Law of Nations: an Introduction to the International Law of Peace"states that in order to determine what international customary […]

Bilateralism

Bilateralism and International Trade Economy Bilateralism in International Economic Law This section provides an overview of bilateralism within the legal context of Historical Perspective in international economic law. Resources Further Reading Meredith Kolsky Lewis, "Bilateralism in […]

Mercantilism

Mercantilism and International Trade Economy In relation to international trade economy, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following definition of Mercantilism: A once-prominent economic philosophy that equated national wealth and prowess with the accumulation of gold and other […]

Antitrust

Summary of Antitrust

Legislation or public policies opposed to the monopolization or domination of a particular product or industry by one firm or a group of firms acting in concert. The object of antitrust laws is to preserve market competition. In the United States violation of the […]

Value Added Tax

Summary of Value Added Tax

A tax imposed upon the value added to a product at each stage of the production process. The tax is applicable to all goods, from primary to consumer products. Each processor in the chain of production pays the tax in the purchase price of the goods, applying the […]