Economics (McConnell), 18th Edition

TRADE BALANCES WITH PARTNER COUNTRIES The U.S. Census Bureau, at www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/highlights/top/index.html, lists the top trading partners of the United States (imports and exports added together) as well as the top 15 countries the United States exports to and imports from. Using the current year-to-date data, compare the top 15 countries to which the United States exports with the top 15 countries from which the United States imports. Are the countries the same? What percentage of U.S. imports and exports are accounted for by the top 15 trading partners? The top 5 trading partners represent what percent of U.S. imports and what percent of U.S. exports?

FOREIGN EXCHANGE RATES—THE YEN FOR DOLLARS The Federal Reserve System Web site, www.federalreserve.gov/releases/H10/hist, provides historical foreign-exchange-rate data for a wide variety of currencies. Look at the data for the Japanese yen from 1995 to the present. Assume that you were in Tokyo every New Year's from January 1, 2000, to this year and bought a bento (box lunch) for 1000 yen each year. Convert this amount to dollars using the yen-dollar exchange rate for each January since 2000, and plot the dollar price of the bento over time. Has the dollar appreciated or depreciated against the yen? What was the least amount in dollars that your box lunch cost? The most?

THE DOHA ROUND—WHAT IS THE CURRENT STATUS? Determine and briefl y summarize the current status of the Doha Round of trade negotiations (the Doha Development Agenda) by accessing the World Trade Organization site, www.wto.org. Is the round still in progress or has it been concluded with an agreement? If the former, when and where was the latest ministerial meeting? If the latter, what are the main features of the agreement?