Try Visualizing a Fair Trade World

Employees build and test robots at Amazon's BOS27 Robotics Innovation Hub in Westborough, Mass., on Nov. 10, 2022. Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images

Commentary

For those with a sense of history, it’s common knowledge that there never has been and never will be completely fair and free trade in this world due to the vagaries of human nature and differing national interests. However, it might help to imagine a world where trade is at least moving in the direction of greater fairness. Let’s take a look.

The Challenge

Most nations produce a range of goods and services that are sold in the domestic or foreign markets. There are labor, materials, and packaging costs to the production process, which vary from country to country. In addition, there is a cost to deliver the item by train, truck, plane, or ship to its destination abroad or at home.