Economic Integration, Stages of Integration & SAARC

Here you can find the Meaning of Economic Integration and its stages such as Preferentioal Trade Agreements, Free Trade Area, Customs Union, Political Union Etc. Also you can know what is SAARC and Who are the members of SAARC.

1. Economic Integration & SAARC Mr.S.Sivanandham Assistant Professor Department of B.Com CMA Sri Ramakrishna College of Arts & Science (Autonomous) Coimbatore - 641006

2. Economic Integration Stages Economic integration is the process by which countries reduce trade barriers and coordinate their economic policies to facilitate the free flow of goods, services, capital, and labor across borders. It aims to increase economic cooperation and improve efficiency among member states.

3. Stages of Economic Integration Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA): Countries reduce tariffs on specific goods traded among them. Free Trade Area (FTA): Member countries eliminate tariffs and quotas on trade between them but maintain individual external trade policies. Customs Union: Countries adopt a common external tariff on non-member states in addition to free trade among themselves.

4. Stages of Economic Integration Common Market: Includes a customs union and allows free movement of labor, capital, and services. Economic Union: Countries harmonize economic policies, including monetary and fiscal policies (e.g., the European Union). Political Union: The highest level of integration, where countries merge governance and adopt a unified political system.

5. SAARC The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation ( SAARC ) is an intergovernmental organization established to promote economic and regional cooperation among South Asian countries. It was founded on December 8, 1985 , in Dhaka, Bangladesh .

6. Member Countries (8 Nations) Afghanistan (joined in 2007) Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Pakistan Sri Lanka