Economic research and trade policy analysis
Market access goods negotiations: Salience, results and meaning
Trade negotiations and the exchange of concessions on trade in goods have been the cornerstone of the multilateral trading system. This chapter examines the salient features, results and meaning of the schedules of tariff concessions and commitments on goods of Article XII members: what they mean and what they have contributed. We find that the bilateral market access of Article XII members has shaped the landscape of tariff commitments that provide transparency and predictability to today’s merchandise trade relationships. We also found that the large number of post-2001 accessions coincided with an extended period of global growth, particularly among the major emerging economies, fostered by the stability of trade regimes. When we compared Article XII members with General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) members on bound tariffs, we found that the comparable bound tariff rates were higher for GATT members, and that a number of original members retained unbound tariff lines for non-agricultural products. Overall, results from the concluded accessions have produced more liberal tariff concessions than those of original WTO members, expanding the market access for WTO members’ exports. The lower barriers to trade in these Article XII members’ markets have improved economic efficiency, increased competition and led to better resource reallocation.
Introduction
Les ressources naturelles sont indispensables à la vie humaine. Les ressources non renouvelables, comme le pétrole et le gaz naturel, fournissent l’énergie nécessaire à la production de presque tous les biens et services. Les ressources renouvelables, comme les forêts, les poissons et les aquifères, sont parmi les ressources naturelles les plus précieuses de la planète. Si elles sont bien gérées, elles peuvent fournir de façon continue des produits qui contribuent grandement à la qualité de la vie humaine. Les ressources naturelles occupent une place de plus en plus importante dans le commerce mondial; elles représentaient environ 24 pour cent du commerce total de marchandises en 2008. Le volume de ces échanges est resté assez stable au cours des dix dernières années mais leur valeur a augmenté de 20 pour cent par an.
The 2004 WTO accession of Cambodia: Negotiating priorities and experience – growth and integration eleven years later
Cambodia was the first least-developed country to complete negotiations to become a member of the WTO. Its negotiations took place in the context of the Decision on LDC accessions taken by the WTO General Council in December 2002, in which WTO members agreed that they would be bound by certain restraints in dealing with LDCs seeking to join the WTO. Given the constraints that, as an LDC, it faced when entering the negotiations, Cambodia recognised that joining the WTO could play an important part in accelerating its growth and development. This chapter describes Cambodia’s approach to the accession negotiations: its negotiating strategy, the negotiations themselves and their outcome and Cambodia’s post-accession activities. The foundation of all international trading arrangements is the WTO, its concepts and its rules, most of which are carried over into preferential trading arrangements. Being a member of the WTO provides a member’s traders with the transparent and predictable trading environment that they need to prosper. It can truly be said that being a WTO member is one of the main pillars of Cambodia’s successful economic performance.
Supply chains and risk
One area in which both business practitioners and policy makers are immediately able to perceive the significance of the supply chain concept is in the new risks that have materialised in an increasingly interconnected world . Isolated events such as the September 11 attack in the United States in 2001, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland, the Fukushima disaster resulting from the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011, and flooding in Thailand in the same year now precipitate waves of uncertainty that travel faster and further than ever before. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the literature on risk and supply chains is one of the most advanced in theoretical development and operational applicability among the supply chain issues reviewed in the literature. In this chapter, we review the central concept of supply chain risk management (SCRM) and provide a more in-depth analysis of the SCRM framework’s underlying concepts of risk identification, assessment, and mitigation.
Expansion of global value chains in Asian developing countries
During the past three decades, the development of highly integrated global value chains in which products are supplied, manufactured and distributed across national boundaries have created a new form of division of labour among Asian economies, especially in North-East and South-East Asia (IDE-JETRO and WTO, 2011). The rapid growth of global value chains has dramatically changed production patterns, international trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) in the region, with a notable expansion of intra-regional trade through multiple border crossings of parts and components (ESCAP, 2009).
Avant-propos
Nouvelle publication du Secrétariat de l’OMC, le Rapport sur le commerce mondial proposera chaque année une analyse de l’évolution observée dans ce domaine et des questions de fond importantes pour le système des échanges. Au-delà du suivi et de l’interprétation des grandes tendances du commerce international, il s’efforcera d’aider le public à mieux comprendre les problèmes du moment. Le rapport ne prétend cependant pas apporter une réponse globale à des questions qui sont complexes et dont les multiples facettes font l’objet de discussions incessantes au sein des États et des peuples. En s’appliquant à rappeler la genèse des problèmes posés et à offrir un cadre pour leur analyse, il vise plutôt à permettre à chacun de débattre en toute connaissance de cause et de mieux évaluer les ripostes qui peuvent être envisagées.
Trade in a globalizing world
Economic integration is proceeding across the world at an unprecedented pace. Globalization has brought enormous benefits for many countries and citizens. But some have been on the losing end of the process, and opposition to further integration is mounting for a multitude of reasons. Trade is just one aspect of globalization, and links with broader economic, political and technological forces are manifold and complex. Certain arguments against open trade are fuelled by a variety of factors – including a general fear of change – that have little to do with further trade opening. Governments responding to antitrade pressures stemming from anti-globalization arguments risk making poor policy choices. Trade scepticism is clearly a cause of concern, particularly at a time when WTO members are striving to complete the Doha Round. At this crucial juncture, it seems appropriate to revisit the case for trade and to ask ourselves whether the traditional arguments in favour of free trade are still valid.
Tendances récentes
Le commerce international s’est repris en 2002, après le recul enregistré l’année précédente, augmentant d’environ 2,5 pour cent en volume, soit plus vite que la production mondiale. Ce redressement s’est opéré malgré la faiblesse de la reprise économique mondiale, la forte compression des flux de capitaux, les amples fluctuations des taux de change, les restrictions plus sévères imposées sur les transactions commerciales internationales pour limiter les risques liés au terrorisme et la montée des tensions géopolitiques. Le commerce a connu une vigoureuse expansion en Asie et dans les économies en transition, qui reflète en grande partie l’amélioration des résultats économiques dans ces régions. Il a cependant stagné en Europe occidentale et reculé en Amérique latine par suite des turbulences économiques survenues dans plusieurs pays de la région. Les importations d’Amérique du Nord ont repris parallèlement au renforcement de la demande intérieure, tandis que les exportations ont continué à diminuer en 2002.
Conclusions
The world trading system has always been shaped by technological progress. Not only is technology a determinant of trade costs, but it also defines what products can be traded across borders, and it affects patterns of comparative advantage.
Foreword by the WTO Director-General
The story of economic progress is a story of economic change. It is a story in which whole industries can rise and fall, replaced by new ideas and innovations, which demand new skills. This relentless process of transformation has built the global economy of today, bringing growing prosperity for billions of people around the world – and it has made the ability to adjust and adapt an essential element of economic success. Now, as before, individuals, firms and societies are striving to respond to rapidly evolving economic conditions in order to share in the benefits. The difference today is the remarkable speed at which these changes are occurring.
Introduction
Trade and output growth resumed in the second half of 2009 following record declines earlier in the year. The recovery through the first quarter of 2010 was insufficient to attain pre-crisis levels. The WTO has projected a further recovery in 2010 from the depressed levels of 2009, which should reverse some but not all of the impact of the trade collapse. One positive development in 2009 was the absence of any major increase in trade barriers imposed by WTO members in response to the crisis, despite high unemployment in many countries. The WTO system of trade regulation played a significant role in helping to prevent another descent into protectionism that so exacerbated economic conditions in the 1930s.
Agradecimeintos
El Informe sobre el Comercio Mundial 2006 ha sido elaborado bajo la supervisión general del Director General Adjunto Alejandro Jara. Patrick Low, Director de la División de Estudios Económicos y Estadística, dirigió el equipo encargado de redactar el Informe. Los autores principales del Informe son Marc Bachetta, Bijit Bora, K. Michael Finger, Marion Jansen, Alexander Keck, Clarisse Morgan, Roberta Piermartini y Robert Teh. Las estadísticas comerciales fueron facilitadas por el grupo de estadística de la División de Estudios Económicos y Estadística, bajo la coordinación de Guy Karsenty, Julia de Verteuil, Andreas Maurer y Jürgen Richtering.
introduction
Les normes de produit spécifient ou déterminent les caractéristiques d’un produit. Ces caractéristiques peuvent être la conception, la taille, le poids, la sécurité, le rendement énergétique, les émissions polluantes, l’interopérabilité, le matériau et même le procédé de production. On peut citer comme exemples les dimensions des conteneurs de transport et des filetages, l’efficacité des ceintures de sécurité, des airbags ou des appareils médicaux, la pasteurisation du lait ou les protocoles qui permettent aux ordinateurs de différents fabricants de communiquer entre eux.
Efectos de la tecnología en el funcionamiento del mercado de trabajo
En esta sección se examinan los efectos de la tecnología en el nivel y la composición del empleo y en los salarios. El progreso tecnológico, al incrementar la productividad de los factores de producción, amplía la frontera de posibilidades de producción de una economía de forma que esta puede producir lo mismo con menos recursos, o producir más con la misma cantidad de recursos.
Introduction
Partout dans le monde, les gouvernements interviennent activement et ouvertement dans les économies pour transformer lorientation, la structure et la compétitivité de branches de production, de secteurs ou de technologies spécifiques. Ces interventions peuvent avoir des effets à la fois positifs et négatifs dans léconomie mondiale hyper connectée daujourdhui. La coopération et les règles internationales sont nécessaires pour faire en sorte que les politiques gouvernementales, telles que les initiatives nationales visant à stimuler linnovation et la technologie, encouragent lexpansion et léchange de connaissances plutôt quelles ne promeuvent le progrès technologique de certaines économies aux dépens des autres. Le Rapport sur le commerce mondial 2020 examine le rôle des politiques en matière dinnovation et des politiques industrielles dans une économie mondiale de plus en plus numérisée, et explique le rôle de lOrganisation mondiale du commerce dans ce contexte en mutation.
Jordan
This chapter explores how non-state actors (NSAs) seek to influence government policy in relation to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and preferential trade agreements (PTAs) as alternative venues for international trade cooperation. Little research has been done on NSA–government interaction on trade policy development in Jordan, and almost no analysis exists that captures and contrasts this interaction in relation to multilateral as opposed to bilateral or plurilateral negotiations. This chapter, based on interviews with representatives of government and NSAs, focuses on recent developments in Jordan’s trade policy-making. It has found that NSA activity in Jordan is relatively weakly developed compared with the other cases in this study, but that it is growing, in large part as a result of the influence of international actors, including US foreign aid donors and some other international business and civil society organizations (CSOs).
Acknowledgements and Disclaimer
The World Trade Report 2019 was prepared under the general responsibility of Xiaozhun Yi, WTO Deputy Director-General, and Robert Koopman, Director of the WTO Economic Research and Statistics Division. The Report was coordinated by Emmanuelle Ganne and Stela Rubínová (Economic Research and Statistics Division) and by Antonia Carzaniga (Trade in Services and Investment Division). The lead authors of the Report are Barbara d’Andrea, Andreas Maurer, Roberta Piermartini and Robert Teh (Economic Research and Statistics Division), and Antonia Carzaniga. Other authors are Marc Auboin, Eddy Bekkers, John Hancock, Kathryn Lundquist, José-Antonio Monteiro, Coleman Nee, Victor Stolzenburg, Ankai Xu and Qing Ye (Economic Research and Statistics Division); Pamela Apaza, Markus Jelitto, Joscelyn Magdeleine, Juan Marchetti, Martin Roy and Lee Tuthill (Trade in Services and Investment Division); and Rainer Lanz (Development Division).
Un monde de possibilités … et de défis
D’après une étude publiée par le Parlement européen en 2017, la chaîne de blocs pourrait « changer nos vies » (Boucher, 2017). Ce que montrent les différentes applications de la chaîne de blocs qui sont mises au point dans des domaines aussi divers que le financement du commerce, la facilitation des échanges, le commerce des services, la propriété intellectuelle et les marchés publics, c’est que la chaîne de blocs peut avoir un impact considérable sur les opérateurs commerciaux et sur les organismes gouvernementaux participant au commerce international. Les possibilités sont multiples, mais elles ne seront réalisées que si plusieurs défis clés sont relevés.