International Trade in Services: Implications for the Fund

Author/Editor:

Natalia T. Tamirisa ; Alexander Lehmann ; Jaroslaw Wieczorek

Publication Date:

December 1, 2003

Electronic Access:

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Disclaimer: This Policy Dicussion Paper should not be reported as representing the views of the IMF.The views expressed in this Working Paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the IMF or IMF policy. Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to further debate

Summary:

This paper reviews the characteristics of international trade in services and of the World Trade Organization’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) framework, which was established to regulate it. Further liberalization of services trade in developing countries, as currently envisaged in the context of the WTO Doha Development Agenda, holds a number of potential benefits, such as underpinning the liberalization of goods trade, but it is also being resisted due to its potential adjustment costs. Two implications for IMF activities are examined: coherence among the three principal international economic institutions and sequencing with macroeconomic stabilization and regulatory reforms.

Series:

Policy Discussion Paper No. 2003/006

Subject:

English

Publication Date:

December 1, 2003

ISBN/ISSN:

9781451972207/1564-5193

Stock No:

PPIEA0062003

Pages:

25

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