Mediterranean policy of the European Community : a study of discrimination in trade /

The focus of this study is the European Community's system of trade preferences granted over the years to 11 Mediterranean countries. In eight well-written chapters, Pomfret (Johns Hopkins University) explores the economic implications of this policy for the beneficiaries of such preferences, for the members of the Community, and for countries excluded from the preference scheme, concentrating in particular on the effects of preferences on trade flows and foreign direct investment. Except for a theoretical chapter, the study is empirical, utilizing some material that the author had published previously in several professional journals. The subject has been dealt with for some time, for example in The EEC and the Mediterranean Countries, ed. by Avi Shlaim and G.N. Yannopoulos (1976). The appeal of the present study lies in its thoroughness as well as its cautious interpretation of the evidence. Very informative tables; extensive bibliography; good index. Valuable for specialists and graduate students in international economics, and strongly recommended for library collections on the European Community.-H.D. Renning, California State University, Stanislaus