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The purpose of this paper is to analyze the different kinds of rules of origin included in the US‐Arab countries free trade agreements (FTAs), and suggest reform measures that should be adopted to ease the complexity and costs of rules of origin in these agreements.

The paper begins with a brief discussion of the concept of free trade, GATT/WTO, and the recently concluded FTAs between the USA and Arab countries. Then, the article analyzes in details rules of origin in the US‐Arab countries FTAs. The analysis includes, among other things, substantial transformation and value‐added tests, product‐specific processes, and other relevant rules of origin. The paper also addresses the documentations and procedures required to prove origin and the costs involved. Finally, the paper offers a set of conclusions and recommendations.

The paper argues that rules of origin in these FTAs are complex and protectionist and indeed could act barriers to trade. The paper suggests reforming these rules by liberalizing rules of origin for certain products that are subject to very low tariff rates, and implementation of – among other things, full cumulation and de minimis rules of origin.

The findings in the paper are important to policymakers, and any person interested in understanding the effects of rules of origin in trade agreements. It is hoped that the paper will assist officials in Arab countries who contemplate negotiating FTAs by providing them with insightful analysis of rules of origin in existing agreements.

Many studies have been carried on the effect of trade preferences, in particular from the viewpoint of lesser developed countries. There has been little focus on the importer, who has to consider their business strategy and the risk of non-compliance of legislation before obtaining preferences. One of the main issues is compliance with the country of origin rule by an importer wishing to access preferential tariffs. The chapter provides an insight into the issues facing importers and considers whether the preferences are being used to their full potential. It raises the question: Are importers choosing not to use the reduction of import tariffs in relation to preference due to its complexity? This study was carried out to highlight importers’ issues by interviewing senior management of eight European companies in relation to their approach to generalised system of preference (GSP). The results provide an interesting evaluation of the importers’ many dilemmas when choosing to use trade preferences.

This paper outlines the current state of international textile trade between developed and developing countries and traces the history of textile trade agreements over the past three decades. Possible future policy scenarios for world trade in these commodities are presented. The general views of different country groups are examined, as well as the perspective of groups within the US. Implications for government policy‐makers and those marketing textile and apparel products are discussed in an effort to meet the challenge of designing an equitable system of trade and achieving the beneficial exchange of textile and apparel products worldwide.

Introduction: The main feature of modern society today is the digital way of life combined with digitalisation. It affects every aspect of life. Today’s main drivers of change are modern electronic communications and high-speed internet connections or services created by digitalisation. Thus, digitalisation stimulates economic growth by creating new jobs, especially in the information and communication sector, increasing the savings of individuals and public and private companies, increasing productivity and providing new opportunities for personal development and motivation. Therefore, the digital economy poses significant challenges to the EU tax system. The identified tax challenges are nexus, data and characterisation, standard tax avoidance practices and direct and indirect tax risks. To address these challenges, the concept of Tax Administration 3.0 should be implemented. Under this concept, digital tools will make tax administration better organised and more efficient, both in combating abuse and improving the quality of tax reporting and compliance.

Aim: This study aims to present the digital economy’s direct and indirect tax challenges from an EU perspective. In addition, it will also present the current situation of the digital levy proposed by the European Commission and the level of Europe’s digital performance among EU member states.

Method: Following the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) methodology, Europe’s digital performance varied widely among EU member states between 2015 and 2020.

Findings: The results show that the digital sector is highly involved in tax planning practices and significantly affects Europe’s digital performance. Moreover, there is no consensus on implementing the digital levy in EU member states since only a few of the EU member states have implemented the digital levy. Based on the findings, the author proposes introducing the digital levy in all EU member states to restore and maintain the sustainability of public finance, especially after the crisis COVID-19.

This study investigates the impact of geopolitical disruptions on the manufacturing supply chain (SC) location decision of managers in UK multinational firms. The context of study is the UK manufacturing sector and its response to the UK's decision to leave the European Union (EU), or Brexit.

The study adopts an abductive, theory elaboration approach and expands on Dunning's eclectic paradigm of international production. A Delphi study over four iterative rounds is conducted to gather and assess insights into manufacturing SC location issues related to Brexit. The panel consisted of 30 experts and managers from a range of key industries, consultancies, governmental organisations, and academia. The Delphi findings are triangulated using a focus group with 38 participants.

The findings indicate that the majority of companies planned or have relocated production facilities from the UK to the EU, and distribution centres (DCs) from the EU to the UK. This was because of market-seeking advantages (being close to major centres of demand, ease of access to local and international markets) and efficiency-seeking advantages (costs related to expected delays at ports, tariff and non-tariff barriers). Ownership and internalisation advantages, also suggested by the eclectic paradigm, did not play a role in the location decision.

The study elaborates on the OLI framework by showing that policy-related uncertainty is a primary influencing factor in the manufacturing location decision, outweighing the importance of uncertainty as an influencer of governance mode choices. The authors find that during geopolitical disruptions managers make location decisions in tight time-frames with incomplete and imperfect information, in situations of high perceived uncertainty. The study elaborates on the eclectic paradigm by explaining how managerial cognition and bounded rationality influence the manufacturing location decision-making process.

The interim performance of the six‐year‐old Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) has been mixed. Export performance has been especially strong in agribusiness, chemicals and high technology components; and success stories abound in other product areas as well. However, legislative exclusions and quotas on major high volume, competitive products such as textiles and shoes; inadequate local infrastructure, such as roads, ports and transportation carriers; poor knowledge of export opportunities; and the lack of an export “consciousness” among government and producers have impeded the ability of beneficiary countries to attain significant and far‐reaching benefits. At present, countries are begining to adjust to the CBI and remove, in part, the deficiencies cited. Additionally, revised legislation to broaden product coverage, liberalise access, and extend the time‐frame of the CBI is under consideration, and medium‐sized foreign firms are increasing their activity in the region in the areas of trading, licensing and investment.

Many multinational firms attempt to cope with trade policy uncertainties by developing the option of manufacturing their goods in multiple production facilities in different countries. In this chapter, we explore how such “production switching” options affect the vulnerability of a country’s exports to foreign protectionism. We present a theoretical model of such behavior and show that production switching increases the elasticity of a country’s export with respect to tariffs. The magnitude of the elasticity depends on a country’s position in the value chain. We use the model’s predictions to provide new insights into the vulnerability of China’s exports during the current Sino–US trade war.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of third-party logistics providers (TPLs) in providing innovative logistics solutions for Brazilian importations.

A multiple case study has been conducted in which four logistics service providers are interviewed on the topic of innovation in importation logistics. The collected data (interviews, brochures and presentations) were triangulated and analyzed.

The collected data highlight the integrating role of TPLs in providing innovative logistics solutions of the technological nature, in addition to drivers, which involve communication, trust, logistics and institutional actions.

This study, instead of focusing on procedural issues, intended to focus on two important theoretical and practical drivers: innovation in the importation process and strengthening of intangible factors. It is known that trading conditions and geographical proximity have an impact in importation, but they have not been discussed here because of the subject delimitation of the present study. Regarding the implications of the present study, no specific theoretical reference has been found on the subject in terms of the importation process but is rather related to information technology, which is then presented.

This study focuses on the fundamental role of TPLs in the development of innovative logistics solutions in importation.

The fundamental role of TPLs in the development of innovative logistics solutions in importation is based on trust and relationship, internal and external to the organization.

This study, instead of focusing on procedural issues, intends to focus on two important theoretical and practical drivers – innovation in the importation process and strengthening of intangible factors – suggesting that a change of mind-set and a differentiated background in importation logistics are developed by TPLs.

The purpose of this study is to identify US textile and apparel (TAP) products and categories that demonstrate export comparative advantage and their respective country destinations.

Revealed comparative advantage (RCA) and normalized revealed comparative advantage (NRCA) in the long term (1996-2016) and short term (2010-2016) using two-digit Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System codes (HS codes) provide an insight into export advantage of TAP products. Non-parametric rank correlation (i.e. Spearman rank correlation) tests consistency between RCA and NRCA. Subsequently, NRCA using four-digit HS codes identify textile sub-categories with export comparative advantage. Bilateral trade data identify export destinations for sub-categories that indicate US export comparative advantage in the short term.

Aggregated product-level comparison of RCA and NRCA ranking indicates a consistent positive correlation between the two indices. The disaggregated findings reveal cotton fiber HS5201, artificial filament tow HS5502, non-wovens HS5603, cotton yarn HS5205, carpet and other floor coverings HS5703 and worn clothing HS6309 as sources of US TAP export advantage.

This research provides a comprehensive, current analysis of the US competitive position within the TAP global environment. Incorporation of NRCA into the study’s design demonstrates the flexibility of this measure in a new industry context.