The following is excerpted from today’s edition of ST&R “WorldTrade Interactive”.
An outbreak of swine flu that has spread to the U.S. and other countries is beginning to raise some concern about the possible imposition of trade and travel restrictions. Some such measures have already been taken; for example, a BBC article reports that “China and Russia have banned imports of pork and pork products from Mexico and three US states that have reported cases of swine flu” and that Indonesia plans to soon follow suit. According to the Associated Press, these steps have sparked fears that global trade could slow even further and jeopardize prospects for a possible economic recovery later this year. A Reuters article points out that any trade restrictions imposed due to a public health emergency would be permitted under World Trade Organization rules.
The U.S. has yet to limit international trade or travel due to the outbreak… An AP article added that the U.S. has “stepped up checks of people entering the country by air, land and sea.” Reuters noted that U.S. agricultural producers are particularly concerned about potential restrictions considering that Mexico and Canada are their two largest export markets…
