Dear Editor,
The purpose of this article is to help a dependent country reduce its dependence on income and other financial support from the mother country to help solve economic problems, but instead organized trade for improving the economy of the country. Trade affects diverse communities in the distribution of goods and services around the world. Various topics of concern are discussed to provide better understanding on important issues regarding business inability to trade. Leadership of government is also a crucial factor in managing some of these trading policies for promoting economic growth and stability for the economy. For more information on leadership qualities, please read: 1 Kings 4:29, Proverb 1:5, and Luke 2:52.
International trade is currently affecting many dependent countries in the world today. This is due to wars between the parent country, investment to tackle climate change, providing assistance to the dependent countries during natural disasters, and the distribution coronavirus COVID-19 vaccines to their overseas entities. Exports and imports trade are very important because goods which cannot be produce in the country have to be imported from elsewhere.
Nowadays supply chains are also affected by huge tariffs on imported goods. Trade embargoes, quotas, currencies exchange control are also contributing factors for these entities. Without trade and removing these barriers to trade, will cause many businesses to close. If small countries do not trade, unemployment will rise because there’ll be no money to pay workers. The purchasing power of the work-force will be also affected. Most people wouldn’t be able to feed the family.
Trade barriers are serious problems for the dependents in exports and imports trade. These barriers to trade usually cause the cost of goods and services to rise which could result in high inflation.
Two other important tools dependent economies can use effectively to manage their trading operation are the balance of trade figures and the balance of payments figures. These figures indicate how well the country is trading, and the health of the economy. A plus figure in the balance of trade is an indication the country is doing well. A minus figure indicates a negative result, meaning unsatisfactory trading result. The same methods apply to the balance of payments.
Many of these dependent countries only have balance of payments trading figures and not balance of trade figures. When there’s a negative balance of payments no money can be put into the reserve account. Positive cash reserves will prevent a weak trading currency and strengthen the purchasing power of the country. A strong currency will prevent devaluation during trading with other countries and also maintain economic stability.
Three important economic indicators are necessary to promote economic growth and stability for these dependents: The national income, the cost-of-living index, and the income per capita indicators. Without these measures governments of these countries will not be able to make proper adjustment to the living wage, unemployment situation of the labor force, and the income per capita of the work-force. When no survey or study is carried out on these indicators, economic prediction might be misleading, and the outcome may not be correct to use by governments or other institutions.
Trade is important for economic stability, growth and prosperity. Countries with one-pillar economy must diversify to be creative and productive. Don’t let outside forces control the economy of your country. Always remember, only a productive country could be strong. Stop begging and become productive. Cut back on loans and other debt burden transactions. The idea is to save in the reserve account. Abraham Lincoln once said a penny saved is a penny own. This goes for governments as well as their population.
A country must manage its foreign exchanges and resources well, repay all loans when they are due to be paid. Regional trade between neighboring countries is a must. The Caribbean has a lot of goods and services to offer. Some of these countries have their own black-gold to trade with others in the region. White-gold is also important to the world and the Caribbean is no exception. The Ivory Coast and Malaysia have lots of it. Oil and rubber substance are the riches of the world today. Small dependencies can make good use of this trade. Many African countries are fast becoming the hub in global international trade because of these heavily dependable natural resources. Countries in the region could open up trade with these rich nations to help sustain their economies.
White-gold is the substance from the rubber-tree used to make tires and other rubber products in demand all over the world. Rubber- trees existed over thousands of years are protected to promote trade by the origin countries. Small dependencies must protect their natural resources as well.
In summary, trade is the wonder of economics. Every country is involved in some form of trade to receive revenues to pay for services and goods it can’t produce at home. Most of the topics covered will certainly help dependent countries understand the importance of trade and the reason why countries trade.
Joseph Harvey
