Final answer:
Environmental factors influencing international trade include concerns about multinational companies moving to nations with lax environmental regulations and the dependence on key imports like oil.
To protect national interests, governments may restrict imports.
Trade levels are affected by factors such as a nation's economic size, geographic location, and trade history.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to environmental factors that influence patterns of international trade. Environmentalists express concerns about multinational corporations shifting production to countries with weaker environmental laws, potentially compromising environmental quality for employment opportunities.
Additionally, there is concern about becoming too dependent on imports like oil, which may pose a threat to national security during conflict.
To safeguard national interests such as businesses, jobs, and security, governments often conclude that there should be restrictions on the import of foreign products. Understanding the demand and supply model in international trade is crucial to making sense of these issues.
Moreover, it is noted that three factors profoundly affect a nation's trade levels: the size of its economy, geographic location, and history of trade.
For example, larger economies tend to trade more internally, while smaller economies depend more on exports and imports relative to their GDP.
Proximity to other nations typically leads to increased trade due to lower transportation and communication costs, and historical trade relationships can also determine trade patterns.