The impact of digital economy on international trade (PPUE2021)

• Autor(a) principal: Fonseca, Maria Eduardo Sousa e Lopes Mimo da
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/136416
• topic: Economia digital; Comércio internacional; Digital economy; Knowledge economy; International trade; Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Sociais::Ciências Políticas

Considering both the societal and economic implications of digitization on international trade is an important step towards the understanding of the opportunities and risks it provides to all stakeholders involved. Revolutions in natural resources have encouraged a method of wealth creation and social-economic development beyond the traditional methods of production. Over the years, digitization was applied beyond binary systems, developing into more complex information such as graphs and photographs. Information was outdated and analog in the old economy as people communicated by physical means like sending letters and moving from one place to another. Daily business operations were run in material ways. However, in the new economy, the digital economy, everything is modernized. This has led to the digital disruption of value chains by eliminating intermediaries in economic activities such as the middlemen, agents, brokers, and wholesalers. Online platforms and marketplaces have replaced this function as communication is facilitated between buyers and suppliers at reduced costs. As a result, companies obtain real-time data about their customer base and can meet their needs with more predictability. The digital economy demands, therefore, that companies continuously bring changes to new or existing products to accompany the rhythm of innovation. The old economy was reliant on raw materials, productivity levels, cost of operations and labor. However, the new economy demands that creativity and human imagination are placed at the center of a company’s priorities. With knowledge-based capital becoming the key resource in the digital economy, the production shifts to the creative minds of knowledge workers who create value in business. This comes in the form of adopting a more horizontal hierarchical structure so that information can flow easily across the organization and be transferred into knowledge. Establishing a network of individuals who can openly collaborate fosters motivation and wellbeing, leading to the creation of high-performing global teams. In Europe, the human capital dimension has been a priority for EU’s Digital Decade 2030 Strategic Plan with the creation of upskilling and reskilling programs. Portugal’s human capital dimension has been improving over the last years due to the Portuguese Government’s efforts to make digital literacy a national goal. On that note, the country has been following a comprehensive Digital Transition Action Plan which is built on the basis of three main pillars: digital inclusion of citizens, SMEs digital transformation and digitalization of public services. Efforts to digitalize the public administration is also a consequence of the effects of digital economy on international trade, as the possibility for MNCs to expand and relocate to markets has been facilitated by the automatization of previous existing bureaucratic customs procedures. Policymaking has also been impacted by the digital economy as international agreements need to consider the shift in international trade, moving mainly from the transportation of goods across borders to e-commerce. The creation of international standards that address industry specifies is being coordinated in multilateral forums such as the WTO. A series of advancements have been made with the purpose of guaranteeing the acceptance of e-contracts, ban custom duties on electronic transmissions and address data localization requirements imposed by Members States national legislation. Even though the governments and public bodies are attempting to implement common strategies to prevent unfair practices from ‘Big Tech’ and other economic operators, the market power and influence they exercise seems to challenge our society and individual values. The rise of businesses with ‘core platform service’ business models makes the author question the threat their economic activity represents to our democratic values of freedom, democracy and human dignity.