国际贸易简答essay.docVIP

CHAPTER 1—THE INTERNATIONAL ECONOMY AND GLOBALIZATION SHORT ANSWER 1. What is the most important factor which contributes to competitiveness? ANS: Key to the concept of competitiveness is productivity, or output per worker hour. PTS: 1 2. What are the challenges of the international trading system? ANS: Among the challenges that the international trading system faces are dealing with fair labor standards and concerns about the environment. PTS: 1 ESSAY 1. Does exposure to competition with the world leader in a particular industry improve a firms productivity? ANS: The McKinsey institute found that higher productivity rested on the ability of mangers to invent new and ever more efficient ways of making products and on the ability of engineers to design products that are easy to make. The institute researchers observed that in the auto industry in Japan or the food industry in the United States, managers and engineers do not achieve innovations because they are smarter work harder or are better educated than their peers. They do so because they are subjected to intense global competition, where improving labor productivity is the key to success. PTS: 1 2. What are the essential arguments in favor of free trade? ANS: Proponents of an open trading system contend that international trade results in higher levels of consumption and investment, lower prices of commodities, and a wider range of product choices for consumers. Trade also enables workers to become more productive, and wages of workers whose skills are more scarce internationally tend to rise. PTS: 1 CHAPTER 2—FOUNDATIONS OF MODERN TRADE THEORY: COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE SHORT ANSWER 1. Is it possible to add up the preferences of all consumers in an entire nation? ANS: No. It is impossible to make interpersonal comparisons of satisfaction, and thus it is not possible to add up preferences. PTS: 1 2. Who gains more from trade, when nations are of unequal economic size? ANS: If one nation is significantly