Should Singapore Pursue Free Trade Agreements?
Should Singapore pursue free-trade agreements?
1000 words
The world is on our supermarket shelves - this is illustrative of the extent of trade Singapore engages in. As a small, open and export-oriented economy, the hinterland relies heavily on international exchange of trade to drive her economy. Singapore could be said to abide by a neoliberalist model that advocates the market’s independence from state’s intervention, and pursues the minimisation of trade. Within this objective lies two approaches. One, Singapore should continue to negotiate Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) as the best approach to achieve its trade objectives. The other option deals with the government ceasing the negotiating of FTAs, abrogating those in place, and to advance …show more content…
FTAs have been instrumental to importers enjoying preferential tariff rates instead of paying the full MFN rates thereby enjoying tariff savings, enhancing cost competiveness for our exports. It proves to be a better alternative to WTOs as it is able to gain better access to the market it which she values. In the 1993 ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), Singapore signed the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services, allowing it to abrogate any barriers to trade in services to better integrate its service industry. Through FTAs with targeted partner countries, Singapore is also able to pursue for specific terms which benefit her unique traits of her economy. The Intellectual Property (IP) Protection strengthens partner countries’ commitment to protect IP rights and renders Singapore leverage over her technological advancements, increasing her economic competiveness. However, WTOs are uniform in its trading terms across all member countries, stifling potential economic growth of individual countries. Thus, Singapore would do better to utilize FTAs as a direct yet effective way to improve her economy through the communication of specific trade concessions that will expedite her economy’s …show more content…
The Trans-Pacific Partnership allows Singapore to aggregate her power with a group of countries, to cater to the modern business needs. In a small group, trade bargaining is more effective and legitimate. Often, WTOs stymie the member countries’ economic progress since it fails on two counts of effectiveness and legitimacy. The WTO congregates countries of contrasting economic structures such as the industrialised and labour-intensive countries divided on the issues of liberalisation and protectionism due to their opposing points of comparative advantage. In the Doha Round of 2001, the protracted discussion that failed to resolve the Singapore issues is telling of the divided interests that has delayed the bargaining process with slow resolution. Further, the December 2013 Bali Ministerial sees the illegitimacy of the Dispute Settlement Mechanism since India’s defection has led to the collapse of the agreement with inconclusive compensation
1000 words
The world is on our supermarket shelves - this is illustrative of the extent of trade Singapore engages in. As a small, open and export-oriented economy, the hinterland relies heavily on international exchange of trade to drive her economy. Singapore could be said to abide by a neoliberalist model that advocates the market’s independence from state’s intervention, and pursues the minimisation of trade. Within this objective lies two approaches. One, Singapore should continue to negotiate Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) as the best approach to achieve its trade objectives. The other option deals with the government ceasing the negotiating of FTAs, abrogating those in place, and to advance …show more content…
FTAs have been instrumental to importers enjoying preferential tariff rates instead of paying the full MFN rates thereby enjoying tariff savings, enhancing cost competiveness for our exports. It proves to be a better alternative to WTOs as it is able to gain better access to the market it which she values. In the 1993 ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), Singapore signed the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services, allowing it to abrogate any barriers to trade in services to better integrate its service industry. Through FTAs with targeted partner countries, Singapore is also able to pursue for specific terms which benefit her unique traits of her economy. The Intellectual Property (IP) Protection strengthens partner countries’ commitment to protect IP rights and renders Singapore leverage over her technological advancements, increasing her economic competiveness. However, WTOs are uniform in its trading terms across all member countries, stifling potential economic growth of individual countries. Thus, Singapore would do better to utilize FTAs as a direct yet effective way to improve her economy through the communication of specific trade concessions that will expedite her economy’s …show more content…
The Trans-Pacific Partnership allows Singapore to aggregate her power with a group of countries, to cater to the modern business needs. In a small group, trade bargaining is more effective and legitimate. Often, WTOs stymie the member countries’ economic progress since it fails on two counts of effectiveness and legitimacy. The WTO congregates countries of contrasting economic structures such as the industrialised and labour-intensive countries divided on the issues of liberalisation and protectionism due to their opposing points of comparative advantage. In the Doha Round of 2001, the protracted discussion that failed to resolve the Singapore issues is telling of the divided interests that has delayed the bargaining process with slow resolution. Further, the December 2013 Bali Ministerial sees the illegitimacy of the Dispute Settlement Mechanism since India’s defection has led to the collapse of the agreement with inconclusive compensation