VOL. XL

No. 26

30-June-1997

GCC

Arab Free Trade Bloc Mooted

Speculation about an Arab free trade area is currently in vogue in theMiddle East. The long-term beneficial effects of free trade in terms of the economies ofscale available to corporations in larger open markets, the benefit to consumers and thedevelopment of local competitive advantage are increasingly understood and publicized inthe Arab world, certainly among the technocratic elite. Moreover the fragmentation of theworld economy...