Asian trade
110. The noodle bowl
Sep 3rd 2009 From The Economist print edition

Why trade agreements are all the rage in Asia

110-1-506
THESE are worrying times for world trade. Despite a recent levelling out after the first quarter's collapse, the World Trade Organisation reckons global trade volumes will be around 10% lower this year than in 2008. Trade ministers convened in New Delhi this week to talk about resurrecting the Doha trade talksbut those talks remain moribund. Yet amid the general gloom, activity on one sort of tradebilateral free-trade agreements (FTAs)continues at a feverish pace in Asia. This month, another deal was signed, this time between India and South Korea.
The agreement is the first between two of Asia's four biggest economies (India, China, Japan and South Korea). But the stream of FTAs, typically between one large economy and a smaller partner, has become a flood in the past decade. From just six in 1991, their number had increased to 42 by 1999. But almost three times as many have been signed since, bringing the number of such agreements in Asia to 166 by June this year, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Still more62 at last countare at various stages of negotiation, including one between Japan and India. China and Taiwan are in talks about a deal, which shows just how deeply FTA fever has taken hold of Asia (trade deals are even used as a way to bridge the gulf between the two Chinas). And apart from bilateral agreements, several countries, including China and Japan, now have signed trade deals with the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), a regional body.

A. 어휘
noodle 국수. rage 열광, 분노. despite ...임에도 불구하고(전치사)..
levelling 땅고르기, 수평운동, 단순화. the first quarter 1/4 분기.
collapse 붕괴. reckon 계산하다. volume 容積(용적), 수량.
trade minister 통상장관. convene 소집하다, 회합하다.
resurrect 부활하다. moribund 죽어 가는, 瀕死(빈사)의.
gloom 의기소침, 어둠, 우울함. bilateral 쌍방의, 좌우 양쪽의.
feverish 열광적인. three times as many 3배나 많은 협정.
gulf 큰 차이, 넘을 수 없는 간격, 灣(만). regional 지역의. body 단체, 群(군).

110-2-507
Asian countries' enthusiasm for bilateral agreements is palpable, and they have reason to want to bolster intra-Asian trade. The growth of global supply chains means that parts made in one Asian country from raw materials imported from another are re-exported to a third for final assembly. These countries hope that more bilateral agreements will enable more specialisation. India, for example, hopes that its new FTA will allow it to become a hub for Korean electronics companies seeking to exploit lower labour costs to make goods destined for markets in the Middle East.
Added to all this is the fact that Asia's big economies are set to provide the world with most of its growth this year, and emerging Asia will continue to be the world's fastest-growing region for several years. Strategic rivalries complete the list of incentives. Many think that India has jumped into the fray because China has been signing one pact after another.
But economists caution that the proliferation of FTAs is unlikely to do wonders for the region's trade. Aaditya Mattoo, of the World Bank, points out that because trade barriers in Asia are already relatively low, the benefit of a small further reduction in barriers in one market is tiny.

A. 어휘
enthusiasm 열광. bilateral agreements 雙務協定(쌍무협정).
palpable 감지할 수 있는, 쉽게 지각할 수 있는. bolster 받침대를 대다, 지원하다.
parts 부품. raw materials 원료. final assembly 최종 조립.
hub 中樞(중추), 중심. exploit 이용하다. destine for ...행이다.
big economies 경제 大國(대국). emerging Asia 新興(신흥) 아시아.
Strategic rivalries 전략적 경쟁관계. complete 完結(완결)하다.
fray 亂鬪(난투). pact 협정, 條約(조약). caution 경고하다, 주의를 주다.
proliferation 增殖(증식). barriers 장벽. relatively 상대적으로.
benefit 이득. reduction 축소. tiny 하찮은.