Wikipedia

Trade bloc

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A trade bloc is a large free trade area formed by one or more tax, tariff and trade agreements. Typically trade pacts that define such a bloc specify formal adjudication bodies, e.g. NAFTA trade panels. This may include even a more democratic and participative system, as the EU and its parliament.

Particularly since the demise of most of the world's empires, a number of international—generally regionally based—economic blocs have been developed to promote trade between member states.

Several blocs also have stated or implicit political goals—notably the EU. Varieties of economic blocs include free trade areas, customs unions, single markets, and economic and monetary unions.

One of the first economic blocs was the German Customs Union (Zollverein) initiated in 1834, formed on the basis of the German Confederation and subsequently German Empire from 1871.

A trade bloc is established through a trade pact (or pacts) covering different issues of the economic integration.

Most active regional blocs

File:ActiveBlocs.PNG
Most active regional blocs in the world.

It is possible that a country is member of two (or more) different blocs. To avoid overlapping for this classification such countries are only included in the most active of the blocs in question. The "activity" of each block is measured by the following three criteria:

  • to have greater real practical achievements (not only declarations that are not followed by actual actions by its members)
  • to have more recent (or regular) activities (meetings, new agreements, other internal procedures)
  • to have more ambitious plans for future integration and a tighter timescale for it.

Also a country may be classified here as part of the less active regional bloc if the country itself is more active in it; Venezuela, for example, is a member of both the Andean Community and Mercosur. While Mercosur is a more active bloc than the Andean Community, Venezuela itself is much more active in the Andean Community than in Mercosur. Therefore Venezuela is assigned to the Andean Community for the purpose of this classification. (This is only an example. So, note, that Venezuela is planning to completely integrate with Mercosur by 2010).

Priority is given to such regional blocs that have ambitions for integration in more spheres than just economy (i.e. political, defense and other spheres). Sometimes activities are divided between different (but related) blocs with small deviations in membership (e.g. NATO and EU members are almost the same).

Some colors on the map are used multiple times for different blocs. A darker color means full member; a lighter color means associate state, observer state, prospective member, candidate, acceding state or a similar status.

Template:Most Active Regional blocs

European Union (EU)

European Free Trade Association (EFTA)

Caribbean Community (CARICOM)

South American Community of Nations (CSN)

Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC)

East African Community (EAC)

Southern African Customs Union (SACU)

Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA)

Agadir Agreement

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC)

Pacific Regional Trade Agreement (PARTA of PIF)

Central American Common Market (CACM)

Cooperation in the framework of the bloc currently stalled and status in light of DR-CAFTA is unclear

African Economic Community (AEC)

Under the umbrella of the African Union it is expected that ECOWAS, CEMAC/ECCAS, SACU/SADC, COMESA/IGAD and EAC will join into a common African Economic Community in 2019.

Other states or entities

  • Arab States:
    • Iraq: aiming at GCC membership, but also possibility for Agadir
    • Palestine: problems with status, prospective member for Agadir
    • Sahrawi Republic: problems with status, member of the African Union, general possibility for Agadir
  • West Asia:
    • Iran: problems with political system (for cooperation with established democracies), relations with neighbours uneasy, but has possibility for SAARC [2]
    • Turkmenistan: self-imposed isolation, possibility for EurAsEC if it chooses to engage with international organizations
    • Israel: isolated by its neighbours, European Neighbourhood Policy cooperation only
  • Oceania:
    • Australia: seeks further integration with ASEAN [4], associate member of PARTA, proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership for East Asia (CEPEA) as part of the East Asia Summit
    • New Zealand: associate member of PARTA, proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership for East Asia (CEPEA) as part of the East Asia Summit
  • Latin America:
    • Cuba: mostly isolated because of political system, possibility for CARICOM or CACM
    • Panama: possibility for CSN or CACM

Comparison between regional blocs

Activities
Regional bloc Free Trade Area Customs Union Economic and monetary union Free Travel Political pact Defence pact Other
Single Market Currency Union Visa-free Border-less
EU in force 2 in force in force in force 1 in force in force
(Schengen 1 and CTA 1) 		in force in force
(NATO 1 and CFSP/ESDP 1) 		ESA 1, Euratom
EFTA in force in force 1 in force 1 in force 1 in force
(Schengen treaty 1) 		in force
(NATO 1) 		ESA 1
CARICOM in force in force in force 1 in force 1 and
proposed common 		in force 1 proposed
CSN MERCOSUR in force in force in force proposed for 2014 [5]
CAN in force in force 1 in force
Common proposed for 2014 4 proposed for not after 2019 proposed for 2019 proposed for 2019 in force

[6]

proposed for 2019
ECOWAS in force 1, 3 in force 1 in force 1 and
proposed for 2009 1 and
proposed common 		in force 1 proposed proposed in force
CEMAC in force in force proposed in force proposed in force
EAC in force in force proposed for 2009 proposed proposed for 2010
SACU in force in force proposed for 2012 de-facto in force 1 and proposed common for 2016 proposed [7]
COMESA in force 1 proposed for 2008 proposed for 2025
Agadir in force
GCC in force in force proposed for 2007 proposed for 2010
NAFTA in force proposed in force
(NATO 1 and Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America)
ASEAN in force 5 proposed for 2015 [8] proposed [9] in force [10] proposed for 2020 [11]
SAARC in force 6
EurAsEC proposed proposed proposed in force [12] in force 1
PARTA in effect in effect1 proposed proposed
CACM in effect7 proposed
AEC
(for reference) 		proposed for 2019 proposed for 2019 proposed for 2023 proposed for 2028 proposed for 2028

1 not all members participating yet
2 involving goods, services, telecommunications, transport (full liberalisation of railways from 2012), energy (full liberalisation from 2007)
3 telecommunications, transport and energy - proposed
4 sensitive goods to be covered from 2019
5 least developed members to join from 2012
6 least developed members to join from 2017
7 status is unclear

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Timor Leste Keen To Be Asean Member In Five Years". Malaysian National News Agency - BERNAMA. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ "Iran Considering to Join SAARC, Says Kharrazi". Arab News. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ "India, Bhutan's Big Question: China in SAARC". The Indian Express. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ "Australia Seeks Free-Trade Accord, Asean Membership at Summit". Bloomberg. Saturday, January 13 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Definidos critérios para o Parlamento do Mercosul". Senado Federal - Notícias. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "CNN". CNN. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ "Prensa Latina". Prensa Latina. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ "Asean Trade Mins Meet To Speed Up Plans For Single Market". Malaysia Dual Lingual Business News. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "Envisioning a single Asian currency". International Herald Tribune. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ "ASEAN To Sign Accord On Visa-Free Travel". AHN - All Headline News. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ "ASEAN defense ministers aim for security community". ABS-CBN. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ "Itar-Tass". Itar-Tass. Saturday, February 03 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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