Introduction to regional Economic Integration and European Union

1. ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

5. Introduction
 A process whereby countries cooperate with one
another to reduce or eliminate barriers to the
international flow of products, people or capital.
 Basically there are two approaches to international
trade liberalization and economic integration: the
international approach and the regional approach.
 The international approach involves international
conferences under WTO. The purpose of these
international conferences is to reduce barriers to
international trade and investment.
 The regional approach involves agreements
among a small number of nations whose purpose
is to establish free trade among themselves while
maintaining barriers to trade with the rest of the
world

6. Advantages Of Economic Integration
Trade Creation: Member countries have
 (a) wider selection of goods and services not
previously available;
 (b) acquire goods and services at a lower cost after
trade barriers due to lowered tariffs or removal of
tariffs .
 (c) encourage more trade between member
countries the balance of money spend from cheaper
goods and services, can be used to buy more
products and services.
 Employment Opportunities:

7. Disadvantages Of Economic Integration
 Creation Of Trading Blocs: It can also increase trade
barriers against non-member countries.
 Trade Diversion: Because of trade barriers, trade is
diverted from a non-member country to a member country
despite the inefficiency in cost. For example, a country has
to stop trading with a low cost manufacture in a non-
member country and trade with a manufacturer in a
member country which has a higher cost.
 National Sovereignty: Requires member countries to give
up some degree of control over key policies like trade,
monetary and fiscal policies. The higher the level of
integration, the greater the degree of controls that needs to
be given up particularly in the case of a political union
economic integration which requires nations to give up a
high degree of sovereignty.

10. Preferential Trade Area:
 Preferential trade agreements provide lower
barriers on trade among participating
nations than on trade with nonmember
nations. That is, lower tariffs on imports of
each other.
 This is the loosest form of economic
integration.
 A good example is the Commonwealth
Preference System , which was established
in 1932 among 48 Common wealth
countries of the British empire.

11. Free Trade Area(FTA)
 An agreement between two or more
countries to remove all trade barriers
between themselves.
 A free trade area occurs when a group of
countries agree to eliminate tariffs between
themselves, but maintain their own
external tariff on imports from the rest of
the world.
 Examples of FTA are: The ASEAN Free
Trade Agreement(AFTA) and the North
American Free Trade Areas(NAFTA).

12. Examples of FTA

13.  An agreement between two or more countries to
remove tariffs between themselves and set a
common external tariff on imports from non-
member countries
 Each country determines its own barriers and
maintains its own external tariffs on imports
against non-members.
 A customs union has common policies on
product regulations and movement of factors of
productions in goods, services, capital and labor
amongst members
 An example of a customs union is the
established customs union between
the European Union and Turkey, which came
into effect in 1996.

14. Customs Union EXMPLE

15. Common Market:
 An agreement between two or more
countries to remove all barriers to trade
and allow free mobility of capital and
labor across member countries.
 Harmonize trade policies by having
common external tariffs against non-
members.
 Example is the European Union (EU)
previously known as European
Economic Community(EEC)

16. Economic Union
 An agreement between two or more countries to
remove barriers to trade, allow free flow of labor
and capital and coordinate economic policies.
 Sets trade policies through common external
tariffs on non-members.
 Integration is more intense in an economic union
compared to a common market, as member
countries are required to harmonize their tax,
monetary, and fiscal policies and to create a
common currency
 Example is the European Union(EU) where
economic and monetary integration has created
a single market with a common euro currency

17. Political Union:
 An agreement between two or more countries to
coordinate their economic monetary and political
systems.
 Required to accept a common stance on
economic and political policies against non-
members.
 Example is US where each US state has its own
government that sets policies and laws. But each
state grant control to the federal government
over foreign policies, agricultural policies, welfare
policies and monetary policies. Goods, services,
labor and capital can all move freely without any
restrictions among the US states and the
government sets a common external trade policy

18. The European Union in brief
 The European Union (EU) is an economic
and political union.
 It is a unique economic and political
partnership between 28 European countries.
 It has delivered half a century of peace,
stability, and prosperity, helped raise living
standards, launched a single European
currency, and is progressively building a
single Europe-wide market in which people,
goods, services, and capital move among
Member States as freely as within one
country

19. Why the European Union
The EU’s mission in the 21st century is to:
 maintain and build on the peace
established between its member states;
 bring European countries together in
practical cooperation;
 ensure that European citizens can live in
security;
 promote economic and social solidarity;
 preserve European identity and diversity
in a globalized world;
 promulgate the values that Europeans
share.

20. GOVERNANCE
The European Union has seven
institutions:
1. the European Parliament,
2. the Council of the European Union,
3. the European Commission,
4. the European Council,
5. the European Central Bank,
6. the Court of Justice of the European
Union
7. European Court of Auditors

21. Founders:
 France,
 Belgium,
 Luxembourg,
 Italy,
 Nether lands,
 Germany