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Trade

The links between trade and health extend back to the earliest human settlements, but globalization has brought these spheres together as never before. This section examines the issues that have led to an even closer intersection between trade and health, asks how they impact the poor, and explores the tensions that arise between the goals of protecting and promoting health and generating wealth through trade.

Trade

29.3%

Goods and services exports as share of global GDP

Goods and services exports as share of global GDP Goods and services exports as share of global GDP

48%

Developing country share of global trade, 2014

Developing country share of global trade, 2014 Developing country share of global trade, 2014

50

Preferential trade agreements, in 1990

Preferential trade agreements, in 1990 Preferential trade agreements, in 1990

301

Preferential trade agreements in 2019

Preferential trade agreements in 2019 Preferential trade agreements in 2019

1995

Founding of World Trade Organization (WTO)

Founding of World Trade Organization (WTO) Founding of World Trade Organization (WTO)

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Trade
Nepalese police officers and other officials walking inside the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu after Nepal confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country on January 28, 2020. The picture shows three officers in full uniforms and two officials wearing suits walking toward the camera down a long air terminal corridor with windows on both sides. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar.

Coronavirus and the Cruel Cost of Closing Borders
by Deepa Jahagirdar - January 28, 2020

Travel bans rarely prevent disease spread, but they have negative consequences—and may violate international health law

Trade
Chinese men work at a brick production plant in Xian, northwest of China's Shaanxi province on April 27, 2005. The photo shows a man pulling bricks off a stack where they were presumably kiln fired and placing them into a stack in the foreground. the overall color of the photo is brick red, suggesting that the dust is everywhere.

Tackling Occupational Diseases in China

by Yanzhong Huang

With 200 million or more workers exposed to unsafe conditions, holding employers accountable remains a daunting task

Trade
People waiting at Fatmawati hospital in Jakarta on May 17, 2013, after Indonesia announced plans to implement nationwide health care, with the aim to covering all Indonesians by the end of the decade. The picture shows a crowded waiting room with a man in the foreground with a red cloth draped over his head and holding what appears to be a bag of ice against his cheek. He looks like he is suffering. REUTERS/Beawiharta.

The March of Private Health Care in Southeast Asia

by Swee Kheng Khor

How can a government achieve universal coverage for all citizens in a landscape where private care is deeply entrenched?

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Soldiers guard the Ecuadoran side of a border with Colombia in Tufino, Ecuador on March 15, 2020, after country leaders announced the closure of its borders to all foreign travelers due to COVID-19. The photo shows a simple border crossing through a small town with a big sign reading "Ecuador" above the street. The crossing is closed with metal barricades, and a soldier stands out front. REUTERS/Daniel Tapia
Trade

Coronavirus in Latin America

by Carlos Javier Regazzoni

How will the region cope with COVID-19 pressure on health care systems, weak economies, and unstable politics

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting in Moscow on preventing the spread of coronavirus in Russia on January 29, 2020. The picture shows Putin sitting in a chair listening. REUTERS/Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin photo
Trade

Russia’s Not Ready for Coronavirus

by Judy Twigg

Notwithstanding vigorous containment efforts and typical bluster, Russia faces a reckoning if COVID-19 cannot be stopped

South Korean soldiers in protective gear sanitize a shopping street in Seoul, South Korea on March 4, 2020. The image is striking showing the soldiers dressed in silver space-suit looking protective gear walking down a more or less abandoned street in what appears to be a normally busy shopping district. REUTERS/Heo Ran
Trade

Long-Term Impacts of Coronavirus in South Korea

by Scott Snyder

Despite South Korea’s high capacity for response, COVID-19's spread may incite human, economic, and political disasters