Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) are international pacts between two or more countries designed to reduce barriers to trade and investment. These comprehensive...
An FTA is a treaty between two or more countries to eliminate or reduce trade barriers, such as tariffs and quotas, promoting the free flow of goods and services across borders among member nations.
Key benefits include increased market access for businesses, lower prices for consumers due to reduced tariffs, enhanced economic growth, greater foreign investment, and improved international relations between participating countries.
Criticisms often involve concerns about job displacement in specific domestic industries, potential negative impacts on local businesses, environmental regulations, and effects on labor standards in participating countries.
While FTAs remove internal tariffs, members maintain independent external trade policies. Customs unions add a common external tariff, and common markets further allow free movement of labor and capital, creating deeper integration.