From a university perspective, the signing of an FTA between El Salvador and the United States

Abstract

Although it appears approximately a century and a half ago as a body of doctrine independent of the general theory of value and change, at present the theory of international trade is considered, both at the micro and macroeconomic level, as a particular development of economic theory general.
It is considered that there are two specific objectives of the theoretical analysis of international trade: first, the examination of the causes that give rise to this type of trade and the advantages that derive from it; and second, the investigation of the equilibrium factors of international payments.
The study of the first objective is usually called "pure theory" or theory of the advantages of international exchange, or "theory of gains". For its part, the study of the equilibrium factors of international payments constitutes the essence of the so-called monetary theory, or more properly defined "theory of the mechanism of international exchange".
The above distinction is quite formal, since both aspects of international trade theory are closely interdependent; however, a separate approach to both theories is customary for exposure purposes.