International Trade Theory gives an overview of the causes and consequences of international trade, as well as the institutional context in which trade (and factor movements) take place in the modern economy. Topics in the general area of trade theory and commercial policy include: determinants of trade, effects of trade on economic welfare and income distribution, trade and economic growth, foreign direct investment, efficiency and redistributive effects of tariff and nontariff protection of domestic industries, the theory of preferential trading agreements, and trade and economic development. Institutional topics include: the history of the global trading system, multilateral trade negotiations and the GATT/WTO system, empirical approaches to capturing trade patterns, and the regionalism movement.