Comments on: Dani Rodrik Looks at the Free Trade Math and Finds Some of It Wanting http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2007/05/dani-rodrik-looks-at-free-trade-math.html Sun, 22 Nov 2009 20:52:22 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Barni http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2007/05/dani-rodrik-looks-at-free-trade-math.html#comment-2764 Barni Sat, 29 Dec 2007 16:47:00 +0000 http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2007/05/dani-rodrik-looks-at-the-free-trade-math-and-finds-some-of-it-wanting/#comment-2764 It is folly to expect a neo-con free trader to appreciate a social or human value. This is because they only consider dollars before coming to conclusions, decisions or actions.<br/>There can hardly be a better operant definition of amoral than one who only considers dollar values.<br/>Free trade's big benefits for neo-con free traders is forcing American workers to compete with political prisioners in China for jobs and shifting ever more profit upward toward the wealthy elites - not the satisfaction of any human or social value, these simply never come into the equation. It is folly to expect a neo-con free trader to appreciate a social or human value. This is because they only consider dollars before coming to conclusions, decisions or actions.
There can hardly be a better operant definition of amoral than one who only considers dollar values.
Free trade’s big benefits for neo-con free traders is forcing American workers to compete with political prisioners in China for jobs and shifting ever more profit upward toward the wealthy elites – not the satisfaction of any human or social value, these simply never come into the equation.

]]> By: unlawflcombatnt http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2007/05/dani-rodrik-looks-at-free-trade-math.html#comment-70 unlawflcombatnt Tue, 08 May 2007 20:40:00 +0000 http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2007/05/dani-rodrik-looks-at-the-free-trade-math-and-finds-some-of-it-wanting/#comment-70 Thanks for posting this and for posting the link to Rodrik's post. As Rodrik states in his assessment of <a HREF="https://www.gtap.agecon.purdue.edu/resources/download/2241.pdf" REL="nofollow">the study</a> it appears that the potential gain to U.S. income from full trade liberalization by 2015 is only 0.1%. This number is shown in at least 3 of the tables- Table 2, Table 6, and Table A5. From Table 2, the real income gain for the United States by 2015 would be only $16.2 billion. (For comparison, the annual budget for the state of California is $100 billion.) The "alternate" scenarios show an even smaller U.S. income gain, ranging from only 0.01% to 0.05%. Worldwide, the total estimated income gain from total liberalization of trade was only +0.7%.<br/><br/>Table A-7 shows that U.S. (non-food) merchandise exports would DECLINE by $10 billion by 2015 with full global trade liberalization. (Just what our declining manufacturing sector needs-an agreement that will cause further declines). <br/><br/>As best as I can tell from the charts, U.S. tariffs are lower than any other country in the world (Though I'm not completely sure I read the charts correctly on this.)<br/><br/>The authors' conclusion reads "<i>In conclusion, the July Framework Agreement does not guarantee major gains from the Doha Development Agenda. On the one hand, even if an agreement is ultimately reached, it may<br/>be very modest....</i>"<br/><br/>"Modest" indeed. For the United States, <br/>the benefit is essentially 0. <br/><br/>The microscopic alleged "benefits" to full trade liberalization certainly don't seem to justify the massive increase in income inequality it'll cause. And this is assuming that there actually <b>is</b> any benefit at all.<br/><br/><a HREF="http://www.unlawflcombatnt.proboards84.com" REL="nofollow">Economic Populist Forum</a> Thanks for posting this and for posting the link to Rodrik’s post. As Rodrik states in his assessment of the study it appears that the potential gain to U.S. income from full trade liberalization by 2015 is only 0.1%. This number is shown in at least 3 of the tables- Table 2, Table 6, and Table A5. From Table 2, the real income gain for the United States by 2015 would be only $16.2 billion. (For comparison, the annual budget for the state of California is $100 billion.) The “alternate” scenarios show an even smaller U.S. income gain, ranging from only 0.01% to 0.05%. Worldwide, the total estimated income gain from total liberalization of trade was only +0.7%.

Table A-7 shows that U.S. (non-food) merchandise exports would DECLINE by $10 billion by 2015 with full global trade liberalization. (Just what our declining manufacturing sector needs-an agreement that will cause further declines).

As best as I can tell from the charts, U.S. tariffs are lower than any other country in the world (Though I’m not completely sure I read the charts correctly on this.)

The authors’ conclusion reads “In conclusion, the July Framework Agreement does not guarantee major gains from the Doha Development Agenda. On the one hand, even if an agreement is ultimately reached, it may
be very modest….“

“Modest” indeed. For the United States,
the benefit is essentially 0.

The microscopic alleged “benefits” to full trade liberalization certainly don’t seem to justify the massive increase in income inequality it’ll cause. And this is assuming that there actually is any benefit at all.

Economic Populist Forum

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