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Circumvention of Trade Defence Measures and Business Ethics

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Abstract

With the rise of globalization, the debate around free trade versus fair trade and liberalism versus protectionism has become increasingly complicated. At times, the regulations of the World Trade Organization seem to pit developed markets against emerging markets as governments attempt to expand international trade while at the same time protecting local industry. To this end, antidumping measures have been extensively developed as a way to block foreign low-cost goods (often produced in emerging countries) from entering domestic markets. In response, some exporters have begun to circumvent these antidumping measures using strategies such as transhipment, assembly operations, and slightly modified products. While previous studies have addressed the ethical aspects of antidumping measures, this study will focus on the ethics of circumvention strategies with a special focus on the theories on legal compliance and, specifically, civil disobedience and conscientious evasion.

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Abbreviations

ACWL:

Advisory Centre on WTO Law

ASEAN:

Association of Southeast Asian Nations

CSR:

Corporate Social Responsibility

DSB:

Dispute Settlement Body

DSU:

Dispute Settlement Understanding

EU:

European Union

GATT:

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade

WTO:

World Trade Organisation

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr. Alain Anquetil, Professor of Ethics at ESSCA, for his insightful feedback on their work and Alliance Europa.

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  1. ESSCA Angers, Angers, France

    Antonella Forganni

  2. The Hong Kong Polytechnic, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Heidi Reed

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  1. Antonella Forganni
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Correspondence to Antonella Forganni.

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Forganni, A., Reed, H. Circumvention of Trade Defence Measures and Business Ethics. J Bus Ethics 155, 29–40 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3536-0

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