“The seminar will also help local businessmen get a better idea of how to protect their own interests through international economic and trade regulations, and how to cope in the current economic environment,” the ministry said.

In response to the global economic downturn, countries around the world have launched a series of economic stimulus packages to help their domestic industries, the MOEA noted.

There is also an increasing tendency for countries to impose anti-dumping tax, equalization tax, and other measures to protect their industries, it said.

This has resulted in a significant increase in the number of trade quarrels that had to be addressed under the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Mechanism in the third quarter of this year, compared to 2008 at the height of the global financial crisis, it added.

The MOEA said there are worries across the world over whether countries are adopting trade protectionism as a remedy for their economic woes.

The ministry said these concerns persist despite the fact that major countries have pledged at international conferences, such as the September G-20 meeting, that they will refrain from using trade remedies; and WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy having said recently that no obvious signs of trade protectionism have been observed.

Against this backdrop, the seminar on Dec. 4 at National Taipei College of Business will discuss a WTO survey on trade remedies, trade protectionism resulting from the global financial crisis, and the impact of inter-governmental free trade agreements on Taiwan, according to MOEA.