Second Conference on Empirical Issues in Int'l Trade & Finance Held

Leading academicians and international trade experts from all over the world are participating in the second Research Conference on Empirical issues in International Trade & Finance at the premier Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) campus in New Delhi from December 16-17, 2010. The Conference is holding intellectual discourse on issues related to international trade and finance and providing a platform to the researchers for communicating their views on their intellectual standing of empirical research in international economics.

Mr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, India and Mr. Rahul Khullar, Commerce Secretary, Government of India, who is the Chairman of IIFT attended the inaugural session.

A wide array of topics related to international trade and finance is being covered at the conference including discussions on Services Trade and Policy, The Great Trade Collapse, Emerging financial architecture and Regulation and Recoveries to Asian Free Trade Agreements.

According to K T Chacko, Director, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, “This is yet another initiative by IIFT to raise awareness, understand industry specific major impacts of foreign trade and get research experts involved for a joint discussion. It provides an opportunity for academicians, students and experts to brainstorm on current issues relating to foreign trade scenario in India and world over.”

About 200 participants, including academicians from leading academic institutes in India like the Indian Institute of Management, Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University and international institutes like the Harvard Business School, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, School of Economics, AUT Business School, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, experts from leading banks and finance institutions are participating in the conference.

Some of the notable speakers at the conference include Bernard Hoekman, International Trade Department, World Bank, Washington; Richard Baldwin, Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland; Gita Gopinath, Department of Economics, Harvard University, USA; and Ganeshan Wignaraja, Asian Development Bank's Office of Regional Economic Integration.