Monash University Handbook 2011 Postgraduate - Unit

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Synopsis

The unit will provide students with key insights regarding how trade policy is formulated, negotiated and implemented; the economic, social and cultural implications of international trade rules; the pattern of relationships that exists between trade policy and prosperity; and the implications of the global financial crisis for international trade policy. The unit focuses on the GATT/WTO System and Bilateral and Regional Trade Agreements.

Objectives

The learning goals associated with this unit are to:

1. assess the advantages and limitations of the multilateral trading system in terms of its decision making processes and its agreements (agriculture, services, intellectual property, etc.)
2. explain the recent surge of bilateralism and regionalism and assess the implications of this surge for the multilateral trading system
3. evaluate the opportunities and the limitations of formally linking human rights and environmental issues to the global trading system
4. judge whether the current global trading system treats trade liberalisation as a means to an end (the end being sustainable and equitable development) or an end in itself
5. evaluate the implications of the global financial crisis for the global trading system.

Assessment

Within semester assessment: 60%
Examination (2 hours): 40%

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Jagjit Plahe

Contact hours

3 hours per week