经贸知识英语串讲讲义
第一课
1）How would you define international trade?
Answer: 第三页第一段第一句。
2）How did international trade first begin?
Answer: The distribution of natural resources is uneven. That is the reason why international trade first began.
3）What is the new incentive for trade that arose with the development of manufacturing and technology?
Answer: 第三页第二段（international specialization）。
4）Explain the theory of absolute advantage and its application in international trade.
Answer: If a country is more efficient, or spends less resources such as capital, land and labor than other countries in producing a commodity, we say this country has an absolute advantage in producing this commodity. The theory of absolute advantage implies that every country produces and exports commodities in which they have absolute advantage while importing commodities where other countries have absolute advantage. (参看第三页第四段到第四页第二段结束)
5）Who introduced the theory of comparative advantage? Which theory makes more sense, absolute advantage or comparative advantage?
Answer: The English economist David Ricardo did. The theory of comparative advantage makes more sense than that of absolute advantage.
6）Explain briefly why trade to exploit comparative advantage promotes efficiency among countries.
Answer: The theory of comparative advantage implies that every country, even when it has no absolute advantage at all, can specialize in the production and export of commodities where its absolute disadvantage is smaller or where it has comparative advantage. So long as comparative advantage exists, trade between countries is always possible, and in the process of exploiting comparative advantage, trade promotes efficiency among countries, since it can make one country better off without making another worse off.
7）Is comparative advantage something static? Is it purely decided by the endowments of nature? Give examples to show the development of comparative advantage by certain countries. Answer: 第五页第三段全部。
第二课
1）Are there other bases for trade when there are no differences among countries in production conditions? Mention some of the bases. Answer: Yes, there are. They are patterns of demand, economies of scale and innovation or style.
2）What is economy of scale? What is the relation between economy of scale and trade? Answer: Trade will be developed between countries when economy of scale is practiced, that is, when different countries can specialize in production and export of different commodities and on a larger scale. And all countries can benefit. （参看第十五页第二段）
3）What does the theory of international specialization seek to answer? Answer: 第十五页最后一段第一句。
4）Will complete specialization occur in reality? Why? Answer: Never. The reasons are the production of goods for strategic or domestic reasons by a country where it has no advantage, the transport cost that may reduce the benefit of trade, and the protectionist measures such as tariffs and quotas. （参看第十六页第二段）
5）What is tariff barriers? What is a customs area and what is a customs union? Answer: Tariff barriers are the most common form of trade restriction, and a tariff is a tax levied on a commodity when it crosses the boundary of a customs area.
A customs area usually refers to the area of a country. A customs area extending beyond national boundaries to include two or more independent nations is called a customs union. （参看第十六页第三段）
6）What is most favoured nation treatment? Is it a very special treatment? Why? Answer: 第十六页最后一段倒数第四行到第十七页第一段结束。
7）What is the most common form of non-tariff barriers? Explain it in a few words. Answer: 第十七页第二段前6行。8）What are the differences between visible trade and invisible trade? Give a few examples of invisible trade. Answer: Visible trade refers to the import and export of goods, while invisible trade refers to the exchange of services between
