The World - Economic alliances
Economy
978-3-14-100890-6 | Page 47 | Ill. 3
Overview
International alliances to facilitate trade relations can be found on all five continents. In most cases, these are sovereign states of the same continent that have joined together by treaty. However, there are also economic alliances whose member states are distributed across continents. This is the case for commodity cartels and agreements such es OPEC and the ICO.
Regional trade agreements
The map on the right shows that trade agreements for certain products exist as well. The 13 member states of the OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) regulate the world market for petroleum e.g. by determining the amount if oil being extracted. The International Coffee Organisation (ICO) connects 43 coffee-exporting and 33 coffee-importing countries. Its aims to promote international cooperation is reached by International Coffee Agreements. These include e.g. regulations on sustainable coffee production and the working conditions on coffee plantations.
Regional trade alliances
The biggest trade alliance is the APEC with 21 member states in four continents and about 50% of the world population. It promotes free trade agreements in the Asia-Pacific world and eventually aims to establish an own Pacific Free Trade Agreement. Most other agreements were met on a regional or continental scale.
In the western hemisphere, the USMCA enables free trade between the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is the successor of the NAFTA agreement. In South America, the Andes pose an obstacle for trade, so there is an agreement on both sides of the mountains - the small Andean community with only 98 million inhabitants and the MERCOSUR with about 300 million people.
The EU is the alliance with the most integrated economy. Besides a free trade area, a single market with a customs and currency union exists. Travelling in the EU is possible without borders and visa. Moreover, the European Union’s focus widens. Apart from economy, the influence in other political fields like foreign policy increases. The withdrawal of the UK on 31st December 2020 shows that this development is met with criticism in many countries.
Africa is the continent with the lowest economic integration. 15 West African states form the ECOWAS, which has introduced a free trade area and a currency and customs union. The East African COMESA is a mere free trade area without further agreements.
The ASEAN states have also introduced free trade, but the plans to create a single market have been delayed until 2025. The ASEAN members are also part of the APEC.
