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Ranking the Trade Policies of the G20

by Marcus Lu
This post is by Marcus Lu from Visual Capitalist

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The following content is sponsored by The Hinrich Foundation
The Great Wave Off the G20

Ranking the Trade Policies of the G20

In October 2021, the leaders of the G20 nations met for their annual summit in Rome. On the agenda were important items such as climate change, corporate taxation, and of course, the issue of global trade.

Altogether, the G20 represents 85% of global GDP and 66% of the world’s population. It is therefore important to track their trade policy regimes, as they have a significant impact on growth and development.

With this in mind, The Hinrich Foundation has analyzed the policy interventions of every G20 member following the Rome summit to see how global protectionism has advanced.

Liberalizing vs. Harmful Interventions

The first chart in this infographic measures the percentage of each nation’s total value of goods trade that has been affected by harmful or liberalizing interventions.

We define liberalizing interventions as those that liberalize on a non-discriminatory or most favored nation basis. On the other hand, harmful interventions are those that discriminate against the commercial interests of a foreign country.

From this data we can see that Brazil is the only G20 member to have liberalized more trade than it discriminated against.

Note that our data only includes 17 economies. This is because the G20 includes France, Germany, and Italy, while our dataset aggregates them under EU.

(Read more...)

Ranked: Harmful Tariffs by Economy

by Jenna Ross
This post is by Jenna Ross from Visual Capitalist

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The following content is sponsored by The Hinrich Foundation

Download the Sustainable Trade Index for free.

Ranked: Harmful Tariffs by Economy

Amid supply chain concerns and geopolitical tension, some economies have taken steps toward localization. More specifically, companies are bringing manufacturing back home and a number of governments have increased tariffs.

This graphic from The Hinrich Foundation, the second in a five-part series on the sustainability of trade, explores which economies have the most and least tariffs. It pulls data from the 2022 Sustainable Trade Index, which The Hinrich Foundation produced in collaboration with the IMD World Competitiveness Center. 

What is a Tariff?

A tariff is a tax on imported goods. Tariffs can be beneficial because they are a source of government revenue and help prevent product “dumping”—when exporters price products abroad for less than they are worth in their home country. By adding a tax to imported goods, a tariff can help keep local products competitively priced.

However, taxes on imported goods can also have drawbacks. They are a form of trade protectionism, and can lower economic growth and productivity. In fact, one long-term study found that a 3.6% increase in the tariff rate led to a 0.4% decline in GDP growth five years later.

Number of Harmful Tariffs by Economy

For the purposes of this data, a harmful tariff is any tariff that (Read more...)

Interested in a Career in Global Trade?

by Rida Khan
This post is by Rida Khan from Visual Capitalist

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The following content is sponsored by The Hinrich Foundation

Interested in a Career in Global Trade?

The growth of global trade is causing a mass geographical redistribution of workforces.

This is creating employment everywhere it goes and grows, according to the OECD. So how can this redistribution and growth be utilized to launch a successful career?

In the above infographic from The Hinrich Foundation, we explore the massive explosion of career opportunities in international trade. To start, let’s dive into the inner workings of global trade.

Introduction to Global Trading

Trading across borders is a complex process, especially when two or more countries are involved. This is called a Global Value Chain (GVC) and it enables more than half of the world’s international trade.

Here is a visualization of the trade routes of cargo ships across oceans. Note that while this data is from 2012, it is purely intended to demonstrate the complex nature of global trade.

GVCs require a chain of people working throughout the trade route of all internationally exchanged goods and services.

According to the OECD, a country’s ability to benefit from GVCs depends on how much it invests in the skills and education of their citizens.

Understanding the Landscape of Global Trade

For those considering pursuing a career in trade, it can help to look at the landscape of (Read more...)

Introducing the 2022 Sustainable Trade Index

by Marcus Lu
This post is by Marcus Lu from Visual Capitalist

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Sustainable Trade Index 2022

Introducing the 2022 Sustainable Trade Index

History has proven that trade can be a powerful engine for economic growth.

It’s for this reason that participation in the international trading system has become a priority for national governments. In many cases, however, economic growth has superseded any concerns about the environment or society. 

It is therefore important to measure whether an economy is trading in a sustainable manner, and whether it can continue doing so.

This infographic from the Hinrich Foundation introduces their 2022 Sustainable Trade Index (STI), which was developed in conjunction with the IMD World Competitiveness Center. 

Who is This Index For?

The purpose of the STI is to stimulate meaningful discussions about the linkages between trade and sustainability. It serves as a practical tool for:

  • Governments and policymakers targeting economic growth through trade.
  • Researchers who are working on trade or sustainability issues and are looking to root their work in quantitative datasets.
  • Communities that want information about ways in which trade impacts them.

A New Index Built Upon a Recognized Tradition

The STI has been produced biannually since 2016 and has historically covered 19 Asian economies with the U.S. as a benchmark. 

For this year, its scope has been expanded to cover 30 major economies worldwide. Altogether, this new group of constituents cover 69% (Read more...)

Global Trade Series: Fragmentation in the Digital Economy

by Marcus Lu
This post is by Marcus Lu from Visual Capitalist

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Global Trade Series: Fragmentation in the Digital Economy

Since its creation, the internet has vastly expanded sociopolitical and economic development around the world. This is largely attributed to the its ability to facilitate communications, data sharing, and commerce on a truly global scale.

Unfortunately, a free and open internet will not always be guaranteed. Fragmentation between rival nations is growing, and it threatens to split the digital economy into silos.

In Part 3 of The Global Trade Series from the Hinrich Foundation, we examine the current state of digital fragmentation and its implications on the world.

The Physical Divide

Developed economies are entering a fourth industrial revolution, spawned entirely by digital technologies. This includes transformative innovations like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and 5G.

These technologies have the potential to improve income levels and quality of life, but they could also worsen global inequality. This is because of a major gap in internet-supportive infrastructure, as illustrated in the infographic.

To get a sense of this gap, consider the following numbers.

  • 86 countries have fewer than 300 secure servers per million people
  • The U.S. has over 110,000 secure servers per million people
  • Denmark, the Netherlands, and Singapore have an even higher ratio than the U.S.

Secure internet servers are the basis of protected communications on the internet. Without them, (Read more...)