| dc.description.abstract | In the WTO context, Regional Trade Agreements have both a general and a
more specific meaning. More general because RTAs may be agreements
concluded between countries not necessarily belonging to the same geographical
region: more specifically because, a RTA is understood as establishing an
element of preference in the trade between the parties to the agreement.
The difference in these RTAs lies in the level of intended integration between the
parties. For instance, in free trade agreements (FTA) restrictions on trade
among member countries are removed but each member maintains its own trade
polldes towards non-members. A customs union is similar to a FTA except that
members normally adopt a common external trade policy. Deeper forms of
integration include common markets, which allow for the free movement of
factors of production, and economic unions, which involve some degree of
harmonization of national economic policies'. | en_US |
