International Handbook on the Economics of Integration Volume I General Issues and Regional Groups

Hard cover. Pages: 560. 560 p. Intended for professional and scholarly audience. `International Handbook of Economic Integration edited by Miroslav Jovanovic provides timely and rich academic contributions to considerations of the widest array of integration-related issues. European integration has been providing an inspiration to a number of academics and researchers. The Handbook is a recognition of the dynamic and strong solidarity of the European integration. At the same time the European Union often provided an example for integration schemes throughout the world which spread enormously since the mid-1990s. Leading experts from all continents contributed to this Handbook which will be a valuable input into academic and policy-making discussions and actions. - Jose Manuel Barroso President of the European Commission `Miroslav Jovanovic s publication represents a rich contribution to the complex issue of regional integration its benefits its shortcomings and its relationship with multilateral trade opening. It sheds light over an issue which is the subject of intense discussions in trade circles. - Pascal Lamy Director-General of the WTO `Much has been written on trade agreements as a mechanism to integrate the markets of two of more countries - often inspired by the European example. In recent years attention has increasingly focused on the importance of economic geography as a determinant of industrial location. This book combines the two strands of analysis bringing together leading experts in the fields of economic geography and international trade. The result is an outstanding compilation of papers that illuminate how policies and economic forces affect the location of economic activity in an integrated Europe. - Bernard Hoekman Director The World Bank US `The open multilateral trading system is a tremendous success of the past half century and has contributed greatly to the world s unprecedented rate of economic growth. Over the past two decades however preferential trading arrangements have proliferated raising questions as to how compatible they are with the open multilateral system and what policies might be adopted to improve outcomes. The essays in this volume detail the emergence of PTAS and provide comprehensive and up-to-date analyses of the state of play of preferential arrangements in all regions of the world. The volume will provide a useful reference for all those wanting to understand existing preferential arrangements and their role in the international economy today. - Anne O. Krueger Johns Hopkins University and Stanford University US `Economic integration is a complex and multifaceted giant with a myriad aspects ranging from regional and global concentration and dispersal of economic activity to social and political consequences for individuals and communities in developed and developing countries alike. This landmark three volume collection of chapters by leading authors drawn from many fields is a worthy and timely contribution to the analysis of a phenomenon with profound implications for the future world economy - and its governance. - James Zhan Director Investment & Enterprise Division UNCTAD With this Handbook Miroslav Jovanovic has provided readers with both an excellent stand-alone original reference book as well as the first volume in a comprehensive three-volume set. This introduction into a rich and expanding academic and practical world of international econom