How is technology changing the nature of global competition? Can governments devise policies that help to create comparative advantages for national firms? An international group of experts in trade and technology policy addresses these questions in a book that contributes to a better understanding of how U.S. approaches to such policies differ from those of other industrialized countries. It explores current trends in trade and technology policies and the consequences for U.S. economic competitiveness. Topics discussed include the changing positions of the United States, Japan, and Germany in technological and trade competition, the management of trade conflict in high-technology industries, and new approaches to linking trade and technology policy. The book highlights the critical interplay of domestic and international policies and underscores the need for policymakers to achieve greater complementarity between their domestic and international economic policies.

This intuitive Advanced Introduction provides an in-depth review of current U.S. technology policy, tracing the legislative history of policies such as the Economic Recovery Tax Act, the Small Business Innovation Development Act and the National Cooperative Research Act. The critical elements of the ecosystem in which technology policy exists are also discussed, with a particular focus on U.S. patent policy and U.S. investments in infrastructure technology.

This book discusses technology policy and innovation policy from an international perspective, with a particular emphasis on the policies of the United States and the United Kingdom. The importance of these policy areas, as well as their relationship to one another, is a unifying theme throughout, and this relationship is illustrated through an integrating policy framework.

This report identifies seven policy dimensions that allow governments – together with citizens, firms and stakeholders – to shape digital transformation to improve lives. It also highlights key opportunities, challenges and policies related to each dimension, offers new insights, evidence and analysis, and provides recommendations for better policies in the digital age.

Global value chains (GVCs) are evolving in light of technological developments, such as robotics, big data and the Internet of Things. These technologies are reshaping GVCs and effecting changes on labor markets in developed and developing economies and on supply chain management. This report discusses how technological developments are creating new opportunities for the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises in global value chains and reviews issues related to GVC measurement. The report is a follow-up to the first Global Value Chain Development Report, which revealed the changing nature of international trade when analyzed in terms of value chains and value-added trade. This report is co-published by the World Trade Organization, the Institute of Developing Economies (IDE-JETRO), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Research Center of Global Value Chains headquartered at the University of International Business and Economics (RCGVC-UIBE), the World Bank Group, and the China Development Research Foundation.