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The Origins of Free Trade in Arab Countries Bashar H. Malkawi

The Origins of Free Trade in Arab Countries  Bashar Malkawi The wealth of nations, according to Adam Smith, is derived from specialization and trade. Nations can gain economically from specializing in production and trading the surplus produce. Specialization and trading in surplus produce would generate multiplier effects, known as the doctrine of mutual gains from trade, in the form of increased national income, higher consumption, and an improved standard of living. British political economist David Ricardo expounded, in his 1817 publication of Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, by stating that specialization and trade were based on comparative advantage (relative costs) rather than primarily on absolute advantage (production costs) as had been thought earlier.See JAGDISH BHAGWATI, POLITICAL ECONOMY AND INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS 3-34 (Douglas A. Irwin ed., 1991) In parallel, it is a source of pride that Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406 C.E), Adam Smith of the Arabs and the great
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Why Do We Need Free Trade Agreements? Bashar Malkawi

Why Do We Need Free Trade Agreements? Bashar Malkawi In recent years (2015-2018), national movements against globalization and free trade have reached a critical mass and have resulted in the election of new political leaders who want to stop or even reverse globalization and restore perceptions of lost national power and sovereignty. A mere five years ago, the United States did not presume that its position could be challenged. However, the global context has materially altered and added further complexity. A large amount of criticism has been leveled against free trade and in particular agreements such as NAFTA based on purported unequal benefits. NAFTA has been singled out by critics as a “bad deal” that needs to be re-negotiated. While critics have claimed Mexico has benefited to a greater extent, the Mexican economy is less than one-tenth the size of the US economy, and it is not plausible that trade integration could dramatically shape the giant US economy, even though int
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Bibliography (Article and Books) Bashar H. Malkawi

Bibliography (Article and Books) Bashar H. Malkawi Muhammad Rafiqul Islam, International Trade Law of the WTO, The Oxford University Press, September 2006, pp. xxxii + 616. Susan Ariel Aaronson, The Turn to Trade Agreements to Regulate the Internet,” in Jean-Baptise Velut et al., in Understanding Mega-Free Trade Agreements: The Political and Economic Governance of New Cross-Regionalism, Routledge: 2017. Michael Trebilcock, Dealing with Losers:The Political Economy of Policy Transitions (Oxford University Press, 2014). Winner of the Donner Prize, 2014 Muhammad Rafiqul Islam, “A WTO Multilateral Framework for Competition Policy and Trade-Induced Development: Debunking their Complementarity in Developing Countries”, (June 2004) 5:3 Journal of World Investment & Trade (Geneva) 491-508 Raj Bhala, UNDERSTANDING ISLAMIC LAW (SHARĪ‘A) (Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press, 2nd edition, 2016, approximately 1,500 pages; 1st edition, 2011, LexisNexis, 1,455 pages [The]
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Whistleblowing Rewards in Securities Law Bashar Malkawi

Whistleblowing Rewards in Securities Law Many securities laws around the globe employ a new scheme whereby whistlblowers get reward for informing authorities about securities law violations or fraud. However, in Jordan, there is no such mechanism. The Securities Law empowers the JSC to take public action against anyone who violates the law, JSC rules, or its decisions. In these cases, the JSC has the power to levy a fine not exceeding Jordanian Dinar 100,000 (approximately $141,113 USD) against that person. In addition to public actions, investors in the Jordanian securities market have two private causes of action under the Securities Law. The first cause of action is the right of recovery in the event that an investor incurs a loss as a result of the sale of securities. The second private cause of action is to recover damages resulting from a material misrepresentation in a prospectus. The basic rule for measuring damages under all these private causes of action is the amount of
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Private Banking in Arab Countries and Market Liberlization Bashar H. Malkawi

Private Banking in Arab Countries and Market Liberlization The banking and financial sectors play important role in the economy of any country. When Arab countries join the WTO or open their economies, there are several risks. For example, opening the fragile Iraqi banking system, where lending to the private sector made up one-half of 1 percent total commercial bank assets lending in 2015, would create a regime more favorable to meg-foreign banks.Iraqi banks may not have enough capitalization to compete with foreign banks. Syria has taken several steps on the path of economic reform. These include increased imports, such as vehicles, and permitting the private sector to venture into such fields as banking, telecoms, TV production, and higher education. In the context of these reform initiatives, Syria applied for WTO membership in October 2001. In its accession to the WTO, Jordan scheduled several commitments that cover areas such as life and non-life insurance services (e.g. t
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Access and Participation: Arab Countries Participation in WTO Affairs

There were 23 original contracting parties to the GATT when it came into existence in 1947. Among them were Lebanon and Syria, the only Arab contracting parties of the GATT.  However, they withdrew from the GATT four years later.  Algeria, Comoros, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian Authority, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen are all lining up for accession to the WTO.  Legally, all Arab countries should accede to the WTO. Any state having full autonomy in the conduct of external commercial relations may accede to the WTO.
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