WTO/World Trade Organization

China has requested WTO dispute consultations with the United States in regard to new tariff measures applied by the United States on goods originating in China. The request was circulated to WTO members on 5 February. China claims that the 10 per cent additional ad valorem duties applied on all goods originating in China, as well as measures with respect to the availability of drawback and duty-free de minimis treatment, which apply to all products of Chinese origin, are inconsistent with US most-favoured-nation obligations under Article I:1 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 and US tariff obligations under Article II:1(a) of GATT 1994.

At a meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) agriculture negotiations, outgoing Chair Ambassador Alparslan Acarsoy of Türkiye delivered his final report, urging members to overcome longstanding divisions and achieve substantive progress ahead of the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaoundé in 2026. Reflecting on efforts over the past two years, Ambassador Acarsoy expressed regret that MC13 in 2024 had failed to deliver an outcome on agriculture, despite nearing consensus. “The position we find ourselves in is very similar to where we stood before MC13. I urge you to collectively consider what steps can be taken to break free from this recurring ‘Groundhog Day’ scenario and drive meaningful progress forward,” he stated.

The change in Administration has not translated into a change in position when it comes to the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body.. The United States, for the 83rd time, rejected a proposal to start the selection process for filling vacancies on the long moribund AB at yesterday’s meeting of the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body. President Trump so far has been largely silent on his views about the WTO. The long-standing US argument is that the AB routinely overstepped its jurisdiction, often issuing reports that had the effect of creating new WTO rules, rather than simply adjudicating disputes.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala invited world leaders, government officials, and businesspeople to “just chill” and “take a deep breath” amid rising trade policy uncertainties during her participation in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland last week. “We've done simulations that show that fragmenting into two geopolitical trading blocs and adding trade policy uncertainty may lead to a real loss in global GDP in the longer term of 6.4%. This is like losing the economy of Japan and Korea combined.”

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) today released its 2024 Report on the Implementation and Enforcement of Russia’s World Trade Organization (WTO) Commitments.   "In short, 2024 saw a continuation in Russia’s disregard for its WTO commitments. Russia continues to erect walls, or tariffs and non-tariff measures, around its economy to isolate itself foregoing the benefits of liberal trade," the report states.

The chair of the long-stalled agriculture negotiations, Ambassador Alparslan Acarsoy of Türkiye provided a written statement to the TNC. He noted that recent discussions have focused on process, in particular whether a facilitator-led process should accompany engagement by members among themselves on issues of interest. Despite efforts to find a compromise, members were not in a position to agree on a way forward.

There has been a sharp rise in trade-restrictive measures in the year ending mid October, the World Trade Organization reported. The latest Trade Monitoring Report indicates coverage of trade-restrictive measures between mid-October 2023 and mid-October 2024 increased. The report, released Wednesday for a meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body, also shows WTO members introduced a substantial number of trade-facilitating measures. But there is increasing evidence of inward-looking trade policies which could generate further uncertainty for the world economy, according to the report.

The United States Wednesday laid out its arguments for excluding national security measures from World Trade Organization litigation, suggesting the better response is a rebalancing of trade concessions when there is a dispute. In a paper, Washington said that “litigating matters of essential security (exception provisions at the WTO)  undermines the foundations of the WTO by dragging the Organization into debating inherently political matters.”

World Trade Organization negotiations on ending subsidies contributing to overcapacity and overfishing have hit a stalemate, meaning members will miss an end-of-year goal of reaching agreement on the parameters of a deal. The chair of the fisheries negotiation, Ambassador Einar Gunnarsson of Iceland, told the Trade Negotiations Committee meeting that “save for any last-minute solution, it seems to me that, as one Member has put it, the negotiations have reached a stalemate even though nearly all Members can support the current text as a basis for conclusion.” The two members objecting are widely understood to be Indonesia and India.

Many developing countries are supporting a proposal from Guyana to prioritize the unresolved mandated issues in the World Trade Organization agriculture negotiations, such as the permanent solution for public stockholding programs for developing countries, the special safeguard mechanism and cotton.  The proposal calls for accelerated treatment of the mandated issues through text-based negotiations at the Doha negotiating body.

The WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) convened on 25 November 2024 under the chairmanship of Ambassador Saqer Abdullah Almoqbel (Saudi Arabia). Key issues discussed included retaliatory measures, compliance with prior rulings, and ongoing reforms in the WTO’s dispute resolution mechanism. For the 13th time, the US raised its national security justifications for origin marking requirements on imports from Hong Kong-China, reiterating its concerns about the situation in Hong Kong under China’s National Security Law. Hong Kong-China and China criticized the US for politicizing WTO proceedings, calling the allegations unfounded and inappropriate.

WTO members agreed to give incumbent Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala a second term as Director-General of the WTO. Her second four-year term, which was approved at a special General Council meeting, will begin on 1 September 2025. DG Okonjo-Iweala took office as Director-General in March 2021 and is the first African and the first woman to serve as head of the organization.

The WTO boss, who ran unopposed to lead the organisation for a second term, set out her vision to member states on Thursday. But with multilateral cooperation at an all-time low, and an incoming US administration unlikely to play by global trade rules, she’ll have a fight on her hands. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has “unfinished business” to take care of at the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Nigerian former finance chief, who became its first female director general in 2021, made the case to member states for reappointing her for a second term on Thursday, along with her priorities – and there’s plenty to choose from.

A “work in progress” report issued last week by the facilitator of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) dispute settlement reform process highlights that many critical issues surrounding the Appellate/Review mechanism remain unresolved, according to individuals familiar with the discussions. The 35-page restricted document raises significant doubts about the likelihood of restoring a “fully and functioning dispute settlement” system by the end of 2024. This objective was mandated by trade ministers at the WTO’s 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) could play a pivotal role in facilitating trade related to artificial intelligence (AI), while ensuring trustworthy AI use and fostering global regulatory convergence, according to a new report by the WTO Secretariat.

The return of Donald Trump to the White House for a second term could upset the plan to keep World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in her post and portend uncertainty and chaos in both bilateral and international trading arrangements, with China likely to be targeted for harsher tariff treatment, said people familiar with the developments.

India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan have joined the African Group in asserting that the consensus of World Trade Organization (WTO) members is required to approve a proposal to institute a facilitator-led process in the agriculture negotiations.

The WTO's Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM) convened Tuesday under the chairmanship of Dr. Wolfram Spelten of Germany. Central to the discussions were renewed disputes involving China and seven other WTO members concerning overcapacity issues. The United States called for a "reset" in the ongoing debates to enhance productivity, underscoring the urgency of resolving the long-standing disagreements.

Supply-chain finance is crucial for enabling global trade but remains inaccessible to many small businesses in developing economies, impeding their growth and participation in international commerce, contend Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Makhtar Diop in an article published by Project Syndicate October 23. Despite the global value of supply-chain finance reaching $2.3 trillion, “most businesses in developing countries remain on the sidelines,” hindered by weak legal frameworks, high costs, and limited infrastructure.

World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is circulating responses to questions raised by members on the proposal to appoint facilitator to help push forward long-stalled …

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