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Article: Is free trade good or bad for U.S.? (Interviews with Robert Lawrence and John Culbertson)
- Article from:
- U.S. News & World Report
- Article date:
- September 23, 1985
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1985 All rights reserved. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Interview With Robert Lawrence
Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution
Q Mr. Lawrence, is free trade outdated?
A By no means. The basic principle--the so-called comparative advantage of nations--that motivated those advocating free trade under Adam Smith remains valid today. Nations gain by specializing through trade, Both because producers gain from large-scale economies and consumers gain from being able to buy a broader range of goods.
OPEC countries have an advantage because of natural-resource endowments, such as oil. The United States has an advantage because of human endowments, its highly skilled and knowledgeable work ...