ABSTRACT
New emerging markets increasingly provide opportunities in burgeoning economies. At the same time, many countries are encouraging intra-regional commercial cooperation as a means of reducing supply and production inefficiencies. Today it is the nations which are slow to liberalize their economies and sluggish about reaching regional cooperation agreements which are feeling the effects of global competition most intensely. Indeed, nations intent on economic isolation are being left behind in global trade and are facing exacerbated commercial and financial problems. 2 In areas where constrictive economic policies are coupled with political instability, social disarray and dysfunctional competition become significant threats. This is clearly the case in the Levant, where a tradition of hostility has up to now prevented regional cooperation. However, through the development of trade interdependencies in this region the relevant economies could be strengthened and political stability promoted. Indeed, if pursued correctly, increased commercial cooperation between Israel and its Arab neighbors could propel the entire region into the level of economic status that other emerging markets enjoy; it could create favourite investment climates.
