Books

" L'Examen statistique du commerce mondial" étudie les évolutions récentes du commerce mondial et fournit une analyse détaillée de la nature des échanges et des principaux acteurs. Les chapitres analytiques sont complétés par plus de 65 tableaux qui détaillent les marchandises et services échangés et les principaux exportateurs et importateurs.

Les « Perspectives du commerce mondial et statistiques » de l’OMC analyse l’évolution récente du commerce mondial jusqu’au quatrième trimestre de 2023 et présente les prévisions de l’OMC concernant le commerce mondial pour 2024 et 2025. Il contient des ventilations du commerce des marchandises et du commerce des services commerciaux par secteur et par région, ainsi que des renseignements détaillés concernant les principaux pays commerçants. La publication du rapport coïncide avec celle des dernières statistiques commerciales trimestrielles et annuelles de l’OMC, qui peuvent être téléchargées à partir de la base de données en ligne de l’Organisation à l’adresse suivante : stats.wto.org.

L’OMC a publié son Rapport annuel 2024, qui présente un compte rendu complet des activités de l’Organisation en 2023 et au début de 2024. Le Rapport présente les faits marquants de l’année écoulée, parmi lesquels la treizième Conférence ministérielle, et décrit les travaux réalisés par l’OMC pour faire face aux défis du commerce mondial et exploiter les possibilités offertes par ce dernier.

Over the past 30 years, the world has witnessed a period of unprecedented income convergence, as the wide gap in income levels between economies has narrowed. Economic growth has improved living conditions and prospects for many people around the world. However, not all individuals, regions and economies have benefited equally from the changes brought about by more open trade. The World Trade Report 2024 explores the complex interlinkages between trade and inclusiveness across and within economies. Openness to international trade can drive economic growth, but many low- and middle-income economies struggle to diversify or to integrate into world trade. Although trade supports numerous jobs and provides access to affordable goods and services, some individuals can face challenges in adapting to new economic conditions following trade openness. However, trade protectionism neither protects the overall economy, nor promotes inclusiveness within economies. Diversifying global value chains, reducing trade costs through digitalization, and transitioning to a low-carbon economy can create new opportunities for low- and middle-income economies. Addressing remaining barriers to trade and investment, facilitating the implementation of existing WTO agreements, and ensuring that the WTO is fit for new challenges are crucial to support inclusiveness across and within economies. Furthermore, trade policies need to be complemented by domestic measures, such as labour, education and competition policies, so that the gains from trade can flow to workers and consumers, and so that those individuals can move to benefit from those gains. WTO cooperation with other international organizations can magnify combined action on inclusiveness across and within economies.

What is “digital trade” and how can it be measured and monitored to support policymakers in navigating the digital transformation of international commerce? Digital technologies have made it increasingly feasible for buyers and sellers to place and receive orders on a global scale. They also enable the instantaneous remote delivery of services directly into businesses and homes, including internationally. By focusing on these two criteria – digital ordering and digital delivery across borders – the Handbook on Measuring Digital Trade sets out a conceptual and measurement framework for digital trade that aligns with the broader standards for macroeconomic statistics. This second edition of the Handbook is the outcome of a partnership between the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), resulting in a comprehensive agreed approach. This Handbook aims to help statistical compilers to address policymakers’ needs for statistical evidence on digital trade. It includes extensive compilation guidance, drawing upon substantive inputs and case studies from both developed and developing economies and covering a variety of survey and non-survey sources. A reporting template is also proposed to support compilers in the production and dissemination of digital trade statistics. This Handbook thereby establishes a valuable shared foundation for understanding and measuring digital trade in a way that is internationally comparable. Furthermore, it provides a crucial resource for an active programme of technical assistance and statistical capacity-building, through which the four co-authoring partner organizations can support statistical compilers as they seek to measure, monitor and respond to the challenges of digital trade.

Les Profils tarifaires dans le monde 2024 contiennent des renseignements détaillés sur les droits de douane et les mesures non tarifaires appliqués par plus de 170 pays et territoires douaniers. La publication commence par une ventilation des droits de douane appliqués par ces économies. Les données tarifaires sont présentées dans des tableaux comparatifs et sous forme de profils individuels d'une page pour chaque économie. Un tableau récapitulatif concernant certains indicateurs relatifs au profil des importations et des exportations pour ces économies est aussi disponible. Les données tarifaires sont complétées par des statistiques sur les mesures non tarifaires, par économie et par groupe de produits. Le sujet spécial traité dans la publication porte sur le thème "Droits de douane visant les minéraux essentiels à la chaîne de valeur des véhicules électriques". Cette publication est établie conjointement par l’Organisation mondiale du commerce, la Conférence des Nations Unies sur le commerce et le développement (CNUCED) et le Centre du commerce international (ITC).

The WTO’s “Global Trade Outlook and Statistics” analyses recent global trade developments. Breakdowns of merchandise and commercial services trade by sector and region are provided, together with details on leading traders. The report is timed to coincide with the release of the WTO’s latest quarterly and annual trade statistics, which can be downloaded from the WTO’s online database at stats.wto.org.

The report of the Joint Task Force on Climate Action, Carbon Pricing, and Policy Spillovers, with participation by the IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, World Bank, and WTO, makes four main contributions. First, it reflects on a common understanding of carbon pricing metrics which inform on the incentives to decarbonize and on cross-country variation in carbon prices, a key determinant of international spillover effects and competitiveness concerns. Second, the report analyzes the appropriate mixes of climate change mitigation policies, emphasizing the pivotal role of carbon pricing as the only policy implementing the polluter pays principle while generating revenues. Third, it analyzes how international organizations can support the coordination of policies to maximize positive and limit negative cross-border spillovers from climate change mitigation policies. Finally, it discusses how such coordination can help to scale up climate action by closing the transparency gap, the implementation gap, and the ambition gap.

Le supplément concernant la 13e Conférence ministérielle pour la publication intitulée “Conférences ministérielles de l’OMC, principaux résultats”

Cross‑border data flows are the lifeblood of today’s social and economic interactions, but they also raise a range of new challenges, including for privacy and data protection, national security, cybersecurity, digital protectionism and regulatory reach. This has led to a surge in regulation conditioning (or prohibiting) its flow or mandating that data be stored or processed domestically (data localisation). However, the economic implications of these measures are not well understood. This report provides estimates on what is at stake, highlighting that full fragmentation could reduce global GDP by 4.5%. It also underscores the benefits associated with open regimes with safeguards which could see global GDP increase by 1.7%. In a world where digital fragmentation is growing, global discussions on these issues can help harness the benefits of an open and safeguarded internet.