Regional trade agreements and the welfare of member countries
https://doi.org/10.18384/2949-5024-2024-2-6-17
Abstract
Aim. This paper examines the impact of regional trade agreements on the welfare of member countries.
Methodology. In academic literature the results of the assessment of the consequences of concluding trade agreements for both individual companies and the countries involved are mixed. The main methods of research are observation, synthesis, interpretation of results and correlation analysis.
Results. A literature review has shown that the results of the assessment of trade agreements’ impact on welfare are mixed. The results of analysis with a sample of 196 countries showed that the number of regional trade agreements of which a country is a member is correlated with GDP per capita in the country, with the correlation coefficient being 0.5. However, there was find no correlation between the number of trade agreements and the GDP per capita growth rate in the countries analyzed.
Research implications. The results obtained show that a more differentiated analysis of the impact of trade agreements is needed. In practice, an unquestionably positive assessment of integration should be replaced by a more balanced approach.
About the Author
V. A. Demchuk
Moscow State Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Valentina А. Demchuk – Cand. Sci. (Economics), Assoc. Prof., English Language Department #4, senior lecturer, Department of Mathematics, Econometrics and Information Technology
ul. Vernadskogo 76, Moscow 119454
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