Rise in State-level Protectionism in US May Be Constrained
Oxford Analytica expects the pace at which jobs are outsourced from the United States to increase in the near future, as the economic downturn drives companies to cut costs and as new technologies permit an expanding array of goods and services to be produced internationally with minimal loss of quality.
Yet outsourcing remains politically contentious, especially at the local and state level, OxAn says in State-level protectionism is danger. “Politicians cater to concerns about job loss through legislation to slow or reverse the offshoring of jobs (especially in high-profile industries such as call centres). The ‘buy American’ provision in Obama’s stimulus package must be situated in relation to this growing grassroots movement.”
However:
“Increasing litigation will occur over the constitutionality of anti-offshoring measures; courts will strike down those measures deemed to be inconsistent with free-trade principles.”
As such, although protectionism may appear to be on the rise, implementing effective protectionist measures is constrained.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
