International Standardization - Insulator to Semiconductor

The insulation of domestic markets through standards-related activities, while not new, has become newsworthy as attempts are made to achieve economic balances among nations. Governmental negotiations addressing reasons for trade imbalances have included such technical barriers to trade as standards, testing, and certification systems. The discussions of these non-tariff barriers illustrate the effectiveness of standards and their implementation in protecting the position of domestic products from imports. Elimination of these insulators and related systems on a country-by-country basis provides opportunities for increasing exports to each country. Pressure to do so demonstrates that today's markets are worldwide in scope.