Deep trade agreements are an important institutional infrastructure for regional integration. They reduce trade costs and set many of the rules under which economies operate. If made effective, they can improve political cooperation between countries, thereby increasing international trade and investment, economic growth and social welfare. Studies conducted by the World Bank Group show: Maliszewska M, Z. Olekseyuk and I. Osorio-Rodarte, March 2018, economic and distributional impacts of the Trade and Progressive Agreement for The Trans-Pacific Partnership: the case of Vietnam. Washington, D.C: World Bank Group. Regional trade agreements are multiplying and changing in nature. Fifty trade agreements were in force in 1990. In 2017, there were more than 280. In many trade agreements, negotiations today go beyond tariffs and cover several policies that influence trade and investment in goods and services, including rules across the border, such as competition policy, government procurement rules and intellectual property rights.

ASAs covering tariffs and other border measures are “superficial” agreements; THE RTAs, which cover a larger group of policies, at and below the border, are “deep” agreements. In cooperation with partners such as the WTO and the OECD, the World Bank Group informs and supports client countries wishing to sign or deepen regional trade agreements. Concretely, WBG`s work includes that a regional trade agreement (RTA) is a treaty between two or more governments that sets the trade rules for all signatories. Regional trade agreements include the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central American-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), the European Union (EU) and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Mattoo, A., A. Mulabdic and M. Ruta. 2017. “Trade Creation and Trade Diversion in Deep Agreements.” Policy Research Working Paper Series 8206, World Bank, Washington, DC. Mulabdic, A., A. Osnago and M. Ruta.

2017. “Deep integration and trade relationship between the UK and the EU.” In The Economics of UK-EU Relations, published by Nauro F. Campos and Fabrizio Coricelli, 253-282. Springer. Ruta, M. 2017. “Preferential Trade Agreements and Global Value Chains: Theory, Evidence and Outstanding Issues.” Policy Research Working Paper Series 8190. World Bank, Washington, DC. Osnago, A., N. .

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