The Washington Consensus may be dead, but its legacy of free trade is alive albeit gasping for breath. In the wake of the economic crisis, governments around the world are contradicting themselves as they propose squarely protectionist measures, while at the same time singing the praises of free trade.
Whatever the global leaders' rationale, the world we live in today is built on liberalised trade. Starting from the launch of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade Gatt in 1947, global trade flows have increased to $28.2 trillion in 2007 from just $120 billion in 1948. That growth would not have been possible without the half century of work to reduce trade barriers from Gatt,...
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