Bargaining in the New Round: The NICs (Newly Industralized Countries) and the United States.

Although the OPEC revolution received most of the attention in the 1970s, the real revolution in the third world occurred through the trade of manufactures and associated development and transfer of industrial technology. From 1960 - 1980, a small group of developing countries emerged from the pack of poor countries to achieve per capita income levels of 2000 and above. Aside from the lightly populated oil surplus countries -- Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi -- the key members of this new group of middle-income developing countries are the so-called NICs newly industrialized countries -- principally Korea, Brazil, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore. Each of these countries relies significantly on manufactured exports for economic growth and development. In 1985, Brazil exported 26 billion worth of merchandise, about two-thirds being manufactured goods. Korea exported 30 billion, 95 being manufactured goods. The opportunities for mutually beneficial bargains in the new round are numerous. But the NICs historical attitudes toward the trading system and severe political constraints in the United States create an enormous reluctance to bargain. Who should take the initiative to break this deadlock