Register for the 2025 UKTPO Annual Conference. When: 28 February 2025, from 8.45am. Where: Chatham House, 10 St James's Square, London SW1Y 4LE. Places are allocated on a first come, first served basis. Due to high demand, tickets for the conference are no longer available. We are now operating a waiting list system, but there is no guarantee that those on the list will be able to secure tickets. For any queries, please email uktpo@sussex.ac.uk

Contact us If you'd like to get in touch, please use the contact form and send us a message and we'll get back to you as soon as possible. For any urgent or pressing media/press requests please email us directly uktpo@sussex.ac.uk

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About the UKTPO The UKTPO is a research centre born at the University of Sussex, with a strong focus on policy engagement and outreach activities on international trade and trade policy. In 2023 the UKTPO was designated as one of the University of Sussex’ twelve Centres of Excellence, in recognition of past achievements and the salience of trade policy challenges ahead. The UKTPO is a central part of the Centre for Inclusive Trade Policy (CITP), which is the first ever trade focussed research centre funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, and includes the Universities of Nottingham, Strathclyde, Cardiff, Cambridge and Queens University Belfast as well as a range of non-academic partners. Our mission Following the decision to leave the EU, the UK needs to reconfigure its trade policy, successfully navigating a path through a new international trade landscape. Created in June 2016, the UK Trade Policy Observatory (UKTPO) aims to ensure that new trade policies are constructed in a manner that benefits all.   For over four decades, the EU has handled most elements of international trade policy on Britain’s behalf. Brexit changes all that and there is now an urgent need to debate and define the [...]

Consultancy The UK Trade Policy observatory (UKTPO) is comprised of academics with expertise in UK and international trade and comprises specialists in economics, law, international business, political economy and development.  We have carried out research and commented on policy on the following subjects: Analysis of trade in goods and services, impact of trade agreements. Non-tariff barriers, rules of origin. Goods and services regulations. Trade in services Brexit and economic uncertainty. UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), and UK free trade agreements The Northern Ireland Protocol, and Windsor Framework. The UK internal market Digital trade, technology regulation, international intellectual property rights and patents. Environment, agriculture, climate change, and sustainable development. Firm productivity and economic growth. Trade with developing countries, developing countries trading scheme (DCTS, former GSP). Foreign direct investment, foreign dis-investment and impacts on the local economy. World Trade Organization and plurilateral agreements. Asian-European trade relations. European trade and integration, trade and income distribution. Our empirical work is done using several main approaches: Diagnostic statistics: There is much that can be gleaned from the focussed analysis of descriptives statistics and their changes over time. This ranges from analysing the raw data on trade, to the use of indicators such [...]

The 8th Annual UKTPO Conference Reimagining Global Trade: New Rules, New Challenges When: 1 December 2025 Where: One Great George Street, London SW1P 3AA This conference will bring together leading academics, policymakers, and industry experts to explore the evolving landscape of international trade. As global markets confront new challenges and opportunities, we will examine how technological innovation, regulatory shifts, and geopolitical changes are reshaping cross-border exchange. ***Due to high demand, we have reached full capacity and are now operating a waiting list. If you would like to attend the conference and be added to the waiting list, please email us at uktpo@sussex.ac.uk. Places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.*** *We will also have poster presentations by Adriana Brenis (UKTPO), Pinar Gunes (CITP), Shushanik Hakobyan (IMF), Minako Morita-Jaeger (UKTPO), Ana Peres (UKTPO), Marcos Ritel (Kühne Logistics University), Mushegh Tovmasyan (Université Paris-Saclay), Dongzhe Zhang (CITP),  and Yanqing Zhong (The University of Sheffield). These presentations will be happening during the coffee and lunch breaks. We are holding the conference in honour and memory of Jim Rollo, founding member of the UKTPO, and a valued friend and colleague, to commemorate his work and the lasting impact he had in our lives. [...]