What is Free Trade Area?

History

Examples of Free Trade Area

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A lot of Free Trade area is created to promote regional growth. Some of the popular noteworthy Free Trade Area is enumerated below:

  • North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): It was created in 1994 and removes most trade barriers for investment among Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America.Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN): It was created in 1967 and with the main objective of economic growth and trade development of its nations, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines.The Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR): It was created in 2002 with major state parties, including Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela, with the main objective of regional development of its member nations.The African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA): It was created in 2018 and is a recent Free trade area and comprises all African nations (as of date, 29 nations) to promote free movement of goods and services in the member region.European Free Trade Association (EFTA): It was created in 1960 and comprises Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland as member nations with the main objective of enhancing free trade among its members and regional growth and economic development.

Free Trade Area vs. Common Market

Head to head difference between the two are mentioned below:

Advantages

  • Free Trade promotes the development of all member nations by advancing comparative advantageComparative AdvantageIn order to determine comparative advantage, the opportunity cost of each item from each country needs to be calculated. Then, on a comparative table, these costs are plotted to get the comparative advantage.read more of each member nations, which allows them to export those goods or services in which they have more efficiency and technical know-how compared to other member nations and import those where they have less advantage.Another advantage Free trade offers in promoting economies of scaleEconomies Of ScaleEconomies of scale are the cost advantage a business achieves due to large-scale production and higher efficiency. read more as well as more employment opportunities for the people of such member nations.Free trade develops trade relations among member nations, which also leads to the development of various allied sectors as well, such as Travel and Hospitality.

Disadvantages

  • Free Trade has an inherent disadvantage that it leads to complete closure of certain industries where other member countries have a comparative advantage. As a result, there is excess reliance on such products leading to monopolistic conditions.Free trade promoted with the main intent of regional development has led to concentrated growth with few member countries gaining more traction than others.They require close monitoring by member nations to avoid the exchange of goods and services, which are detrimental to public health and national security.

Conclusion

Free Trade Area is one of the many international trade agreements through which various countries come together to create a competitive market landscape with the ultimate objective of creating a more streamlined trade and tariff structure. Further, this area promotes efficiency, expands the market base for member nations. However, it is pertinent to note that nations that intend to be a part of the Free Trade Area must create a balanced trade-off to ensure the competitiveness of the Domestic Industry remains intact while benefiting from the larger demand base of its member nations.

This article has been a guide to the Free Trade Area and its definition. Here we discuss the history and examples of the free trade area along with advantages and disadvantages. You may learn more about financing from the following articles –

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