Historic trading blocs include the
Hanseatic League, a Northern European economic alliance between the 12th and 17th centuries, and the
German Customs Union, formed on the basis of the
German Confederation and subsequently the
German Empire from 1871. Surges of trade bloc formation occurred in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as in the 1990s after the
collapse of Communism. By 1997, more than 50% of all world commerce was conducted within regional trade blocs.
Economist Jeffrey J. Schott of the
Peterson Institute for International Economics notes that members of successful trade blocs usually share four common traits: similar levels of per capita
GNI, geographic proximity, similar or compatible trading regimes, and political commitment to regional organization. Some advocates of global
free trade are opposed to trading blocs. Trade blocs are seen by them to encourage regional free trade at the expense of global free trade. Those who advocate for it claim that global free trade is in the interest of every country, as it would create more opportunities to turn local resources into goods and services that are both currently in demand and will be in demand in the future by consumers. However, scholars and economists continue to debate whether regional trade blocs fragment the global economy or encourage the extension of the existing global
multilateral trading system. == Terminology ==