Proposal for an Agenda-setting Workshop on Trade and Innovation ? The Economics, Law, and Political Economy of Asia Pacific Trade Agreements

经济学家研究了大型区域贸易协定可能产生的经济和结构影响。据估计，贸易成本的降低、规则和标准的统一以及结构调整将带来巨大的福利收益。然而，要模拟这些新型贸易协定对创新和创新收益分配的影响是极其困难的。这在很大程度上取决于如何制定和实施新的国际规则，包括知识产权保护、技术标准的制定和使用、政府采购、竞争政策以及其他形式的产业和创新政策。这些新的国际贸易基准标准对美国经济及其全球合作伙伴的竞争力来说，可能远比仅仅降低边境贸易成本重要得多，经济学家对边境贸易成本的降低最有信心。会议将讨论亚太贸易协定的新趋势及其对创新的影响。跨国公司网络的出现将分散的生产、工程、产品开发和研究跨越地理边界整合在一起，这是全球化的一个决定性特征。如果新的贸易规则与全球标准不相容，这些网络可能会受到阻碍。拟议的讲习班将讨论这些问题以及与大区域主义趋势有关的其他问题。会议的重点将放在新兴的《跨太平洋伙伴关系协定》（TPP）和其他贸易协定（包括自由贸易协定）以及相关的《与贸易有关的知识产权协议》（trips +）和《竞争条款》（Competition provisions）规定的新的国际贸易基准标准上；《资讯科技协定》等诸边贸易协定；并就可能达成的服务贸易协定（TISA）展开辩论。本次议程设置研讨会将探讨

Economists have studied possible economic and structural effects of mega-regional trade agreements. The reduction in trade costs, harmonization of rules and standards, and structural adjustment are estimated to create large welfare gains. However, it is extremely difficult to model the impact of these new types of trade agreements on innovation and the distribution of innovation gains. Much depends on how the new international rules are written and implemented for intellectual property protection, the development and use of technical standards, government procurement, competition policy, and other forms of industrial and innovation policy. These new international benchmark standards for trade could well be far more important for the competitiveness of the US economy and its global partners than the mere reductions of border-trade costs, which economists model with the most confidence.The conference will be on emerging trends in Asia-Pacific Trade Agreements and their impact on innovation. The emergence of international corporate networks that integrate dispersed production, engineering, product development and research across geographic borders is a defining characteristic of globalization. These networks may be hampered, if the new trade rules are incompatible with global standards. The proposed workshop will address these and other issues related to the mega-regionalism trend. The focus will be on the new international benchmark standards for trade defined by the emerging Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP) and by other trade agreements, including Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and the related TRIPSPlus and Competition provisions; plurilateral trade agreements such as the Information Technology Agreement (ITA); and debates on a possible Trade in Services Agreement (TISA). This agenda-setting workshop will examine