The past two decades have seen high rates of growth across several developing countries. To a significant extent, this growth comes from their increased participation in international trade and investment. Traditionally, developing countries have been dependent upon developed countries for their trade and investment. The economic slowdown in developed countries with the simultaneous industrialisation of developing countries has changed this pattern of economic engagement and countries are now diversifying their markets to increase exports and investment inflows. This trend has also strengthened due to the lack of progress on multilateral trade negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO). As a result, countries have turned to bilateral economic co-operation agreements to liberalise trade and investment flows.
