This course analyses economic issues relating to the global economy and the effects of economic events on nations, with special emphasis on the effects of trade and economic interdependence on growth, welfare and the standard of living. It covers motives for tariff and non-tariff barriers, and the effects of strategic protection of high productivity industries, and the effects of new technologies. It also examines the consequences of increasing global interdependence on wages, with particular attention to different occupations and skill levels in the labour force. Students will also study issues facing the WTO, especially conflicts between international trade and the environment, human rights and labour standards.