Slow going for trade liberalization

Jagdish Bhagwati and the Cato Institute’s Dan Ikenson discussed the (slim) chance of unilateral trade liberalization at a Cato event last week. Podcast and video available. From a summary by Jonathan Dingel:

Both speakers pressed the case for unilateral liberalization, but neither claimed that such an approach was likely or politically feasible this summer. Bhagwati conceded that the US won't "go alone," but argued that we ought to "convey the lessons of unilateral liberalization" so as to educate people about the benefits of free trade and increase the likelihood of success at Doha.

Via Ben Muse. See Tim's earlier post on trade negotiations and the poor, plus other Doha posts here, here and here. It seems that even if the development-themed Doha round concludes by the end of the year, calling it a “success” may require some holiday generosity.