Conference: November 17, 1999
Seattle and Beyond: The Future of the WTO

Featuring Susan Esserman, Douglas Irwin, Russell Roberts, Rep. David Dreier, Robert Vastine, Brink Lindsey, and others.

This all-day conference hosted by the Cato Institute's Center for Trade Policy Studies explored the prospects for an upcoming trade round, the role of the WTO in promoting global prosperity, and the challenge of building support for free trade at home. A distinguished lineup of expert panelists was joined by Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Susan G. Esserman, who outlined U.S. objectives on the eve of the new WTO round.

Conference: October 21, 1999
The Search for Global Monetary Order

Cato's 17th Annual Monetary Conference (Cosponsored with The Economist)

Featuring James A. Dorn, Jerry L. Jordan, Zanny Minton-Beddoes, Stanley Fischer, Anna J. Schwartz, Pedro Schwartz, Judy Shelton, Mary Anastasia O'Grady, Juan Andrés Fontaine, José Piñera, Steve Hanke, Roberto Salinas-León, David Malpass, John M. Berry, Allan H. Meltzer, Ronald I. McKinnon, Charles W. Calomiris, George Selgin, William A. Niskanen, Peter B. Kenen, Leland B. Yeager, and Alan C. Stockman.

Conference: September 29, 1999
Whither China? The PRC at 50

Featuring Edward H. Crane, Hon. James R. Lilley, Martin Lee, Yeung Wai Hong, Kate Xiao Zhou, Barry Naughton, Peter Rodman, Robert Manning, Selig Harrison, Minxin Pei, Thomas Rawski, Mao Yushi, Mark Groombridge, Liu Junning, Marvin C. Ott, Jo Kwong, David Li, Stuart Anderson, Doug Bandow, Ted Galen Carpenter, William McGurn, James A. Dorn, and Stefan Halper.

Is China a rising colossus that intends to bully its neighbors and dominate Asia? Does China regard the United States as the principal obstacle to its imperial ambitions? Does Washington need to adopt a more hard-line policy toward the PRC on trade, human rights, and national security issues? Or are some members of the U.S. political elite and foreign policy community exaggerating the Chinese threat because they are searching for a new enemy to justify bloated military budgets and other dubious measures?

June 15, 1999
China in the Balance: The Case for Normal Trade Relations

Featuring Nicholas Lardy, Brookings Institution; Robert Kapp, U.S.-China Business Council; and Ned Graham, East Gates International (remarks).

The future of U.S.-Chinese trade relations hangs in the balance this summer as Congress makes its annual review of China's trade status. Meanwhile, the United States and China are tantalizingly close to a deal on China's entry into the World Trade Organization--which would put before Congress the question of making non-discriminatory trade treatment of China on a permanent basis. Critics of engagement argue that the threat of trade sanctions provides leverage, while supporters contend that membership in the WTO will open China's markets further and encourage the rule of law. Ned Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham and head of one of the major Christian organizations active in China, shares his view of the beneficial impact that expanding commercial ties have had on the work of Western missionaries in China. Other panelists discuss the potential impact of WTO membership on human rights, national security, and the American and Chinese economies.

June 10, 1999
The Crisis in Global Interventionism

A Cato Institute conference featuring Edward H. Crane, Fred Smith, Jr., Brink Lindsey, Charles Wolf, Jr., James A. Dorn, Byeong-Ho Gong, William McGurn, Martin Krause, Andrei Illarionov, Deepak Lal, Ron Krieger, Senator Don Nickles, Robert Shapiro, Onno de Beaufort Wijnholds, Ian Vásquez, and Lawrence White.

February 12, 1999
Steel Imports, The Other Side of the Story

Featuring Mustafa Moharatem, Chief Economist of General Motors; Jon Jenson, President of Precision Metalforming Association; and Fernand Lamesch, Chairman and CEO of Trade Arbed, Inc.

A rise in steel imports has provoked a furious political response from U.S. steel mills. Calling on the government to "stand up for steel," they have filed antidumping cases against Brazil, Japan, and Russia and lobbied for quotas and other restrictions on imports. In the flurry of full-page newspaper ads, 30-second TV spots, and Washington rallies, it is easy to forget that many U.S. industries rely on and benefit from steel imports. Indeed, steel-using industries employ 40 times as many people as do steel producers. On the day the U.S. Commerce Department is scheduled to release preliminary findings in the major steel antidumping cases, please click to listen to a discussion of the positive role foreign steel plays in the American economy.