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International Trade Economics

Semester 6 · 24 topics in 5 units

Past question papers for International Trade Economics

Unit I 5 topics

  1. Historical perspectives and theories of international tradeHow international trade grew from the ancient routes and the law merchant to Bretton Woods, and the theories examiners ask for: mercantilism, Adam Smith's absolute advantage, Ricardo's comparative advantage, Heckscher-Ohlin, and Porter's competitive advantage.6 min
  2. UNCTAD and UNCITRALThe two United Nations bodies on trade: UNCTAD, the developing countries' forum (origin, objectives, structure, GSP and its work), and UNCITRAL, which harmonises private trade law (mandate, working methods, CISG, the Model Laws and their use in India).5 min
  3. GATT 1947 to 1994 and the WTO: objectives, structure and powersGATT 1947 as a provisional agreement, its eight negotiating rounds and its weaknesses; the role of the Uruguay Round in creating the WTO; and the WTO's objectives, functions, structure, decision-making, membership and legal powers under the Marrakesh Agreement.6 min
  4. Most-favoured-nation treatment and national treatmentThe two non-discrimination rules of the WTO: MFN under GATT Article I, GATS Article II and TRIPS Article 4, with its exceptions (regional trade agreements, GSP and the Enabling Clause, general and security exceptions, trade remedies, waivers); and national treatment under GATT Article III, the like-product test and the leading reports.6 min
  5. Tariffs, bound tariffs and safeguard measuresKinds of tariff, the binding of tariffs under GATT Article II and the gap between bound and applied rates, renegotiation under Article XXVIII, the Indian customs framework, and safeguards under GATT Article XIX, the Agreement on Safeguards and section 8B of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.7 min

Unit II 5 topics

  1. Technical barriers to trade and sanitary and phytosanitary measuresRegulations and standards as non-tariff barriers: the TBT Agreement (technical regulations, standards, conformity assessment, legitimate objectives, international standards) and the SPS Agreement (scientific justification, risk assessment, harmonisation, equivalence, the precautionary provision in Article 5.7), with Hormones, Sardines, Tuna II and India - Agricultural Products.7 min
  2. Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs)What a trade-related investment measure is, the objectives and the short text of the TRIMs Agreement (Article 2 and the Illustrative List), transition and notification, its limits, and the disputes that tested it, including India - Autos and India - Solar Cells.6 min
  3. Anti-dumping: GATT Article VI, the Uruguay Round code and Indian lawMeaning of dumping and why it is condemned, GATT Article VI and the Anti-Dumping Agreement of the Uruguay Round (normal value, export price, margin, injury, causation, procedure, duties, sunset review), section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, the DGTR, and the Supreme Court cases on the Designated Authority, with a worked problem.8 min
  4. Subsidies and countervailing measuresThe definition of a subsidy in Article 1 of the SCM Agreement, specificity, the three categories (prohibited, actionable, the lapsed non-actionable class), agricultural subsidies and the boxes, countervailing duties under Part V and section 9 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, developing countries and India - Export Related Measures.6 min
  5. The WTO dispute settlement processFrom GATT Articles XXII and XXIII to the Dispute Settlement Understanding: the DSB, the kinds of complaint, consultations, panels, the Appellate Body, negative consensus, implementation, compensation and retaliation, the ban on unilateral action, the Appellate Body impasse since 2019, the MPIA, and India's disputes.6 min

Unit III 4 topics

  1. International sale of goods: the Vienna Convention, formation and performanceThe UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, 1980: sphere of application and exclusions, interpretation, formation of the contract (offer, acceptance, the battle of forms), the obligations of the seller (delivery, documents, conformity, third-party claims) and of the buyer, passing of risk, and why India applies the Sale of Goods Act, 1930 instead.7 min
  2. Standardisation of terms: FOB, CIF and Incoterms 2020Why trade terms were standardised, the ICC's Incoterms 2020 and its eleven rules, the FOB contract (its types after Pyrene v. Scindia, nomination of a suitable ship, risk and property), the CIF contract (shipping documents, insurance, Manbre Saccharine and Biddell Bros), and the other main terms, with a worked problem.8 min
  3. Acceptance and rejection of goods, the unpaid seller, and frustrationExamination, notice and acceptance; the buyer's rights to reject documents and goods, fundamental breach, avoidance, cure and price reduction under the CISG and the Sale of Goods Act; the rights of the unpaid seller (lien, stoppage in transit, resale); and frustration and force majeure in international contracts, from Taylor v. Caldwell to the Suez cases, Satyabrata Ghose and Energy Watchdog.8 min
  4. Invoices, packing and product liabilityKinds of invoice used in export trade (proforma, commercial, consular, customs, certified), the packing list and the legal duties on packing and marking under the CISG, Incoterms and the carriage rules; and product liability from Donoghue v. Stevenson to strict liability, the EU Directives, the Hague Convention and Chapter VI of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.7 min

Unit IV 5 topics

  1. Insurance of goods in transit: marine insurance and its kindsWhy exported goods are insured, the Marine Insurance Act, 1963 (definition, insurable interest, utmost good faith, assignment), kinds of marine policy (voyage, time, mixed, valued, unvalued, floating, open cover, blanket, port risk), the Institute Cargo Clauses (A), (B) and (C), the transit clause, war and strikes cover, losses, and the CIF and CIP insurance duty.6 min
  2. Carriage of goods by sea: documents, Hague-Visby and Hamburg RulesCharterparties and bills of lading; the documents in a sea shipment; the bill of lading as receipt, contract evidence and document of title under the Bills of Lading Act, 2025; the Hague-Visby Rules as enacted by the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 2025 (duties, seventeen immunities, limits, time bar); deviation; freight; and the Hamburg and Rotterdam Rules.9 min
  3. Carriage of goods by air, rail and road, container transport and multimodal transportThe Warsaw system and the Montreal Convention, 1999 under the Carriage by Air Act, 1972 (air waybill, carrier's liability for cargo, limits, notice and limitation, Trans Mediterranean Airways); carriage by rail under the Railways Act, 1989 and by road under the Carriage by Road Act, 2007; and the legal issues of container transport and the Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993.8 min
  4. Pre-shipment inspection and licensing of exports and importsPre-shipment inspection by importing countries and the WTO Agreement on Preshipment Inspection; export inspection under the Export (Quality Control and Inspection) Act, 1963; and licensing of exports and imports under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992, the ITC(HS) classification, the IEC, authorisations, SCOMET export controls and the Foreign Trade Policy 2023, against the WTO rules on quantitative restrictions and import licensing.7 min
  5. Letters of credit: kinds, UCP 600 and the autonomy principleHow export payment works through a documentary credit, the parties and the steps, the Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP 600), the kinds of credit (irrevocable, confirmed, sight, deferred payment, acceptance, negotiation, transferable, back-to-back, red clause, revolving, standby), and the principles of autonomy and strict compliance with the fraud exception, including United Commercial Bank v. Bank of India.7 min

Unit V 5 topics

  1. Laws governing finance and investment: FEMA, significance of and factors affecting foreign investmentThe legal framework for cross-border finance and investment in India: from FERA, 1973 to the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (current and capital account transactions, authorised persons, penalties, enforcement), the Non-debt Instruments Rules, 2019, the roles of the RBI, DPIIT and SEBI, and bilateral investment treaties; the significance of foreign investment and the factors that affect it.6 min
  2. Foreign direct investment in industries: policy since 1991Foreign collaboration and investment policy before and after liberalisation: the Industrial Policy of 1991, the FIPB and its abolition, the Consolidated FDI Policy and the Non-debt Instruments Rules, 2019, automatic and government routes, prohibited sectors and sectoral caps, Press Note 3 of 2020, eligible investors and instruments, pricing, reporting and downstream investment.6 min
  3. Foreign institutional investors, NRIs and overseas corporate bodiesPortfolio investment by foreign institutional investors from 1992 to the SEBI (Foreign Portfolio Investors) Regulations, 2019 and their limits; investment by non-resident Indians and OCI cardholders on repatriation and non-repatriation basis, their bank accounts and their significance for trade; and the rise and derecognition of overseas corporate bodies in 2003.6 min
  4. Foreign collaboration agreements and technology transfer agreementsWhat technology transfer is and its modes, the clauses of a foreign technology agreement, Indian regulation then and now (approval regime, the 2009 liberalisation, FEMA current account rules, tax), restrictive clauses under section 140 of the Patents Act, the Competition Act and TRIPS Articles 7, 8 and 40, the UNCTAD draft code, and recent developments.6 min
  5. Foreign companies and foreign nationals in IndiaHow a foreign enterprise does business in India (subsidiary, joint venture, branch, liaison and project offices under FEMA), the regulation of foreign companies under Chapter XXII of the Companies Act, 2013 (definition, registration, accounts, name, service, penalties), and the legal position of foreign nationals: constitutional rights, Hans Muller and Louis De Raedt, and the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025.7 min