Economic research and trade policy analysis
Agriculture and trade solutions for rural poverty
Nearly 70% of the world’s poor live in rural areas, and most depend on agriculture for their livelihoods (World Bank 2007b). In many poor countries, agriculture accounts for at least 40% of gross domestic product (GDP) and 80% of employment. Thus agriculture plays a potentially crucial role in poverty reduction strategies. During the Green Revolution (in the 1960s and 1970s), development and aid communities stressed the relevance of this sector as an engine of growth for countries with a high proportion of rural population. However, in the 1980s and 1990s the attention given to agricultural policies as catalysts for development and poverty reduction decreased significantly. Currently, agriculture is once again on the forefront of development debate, as recent work on the role of agriculture in development has confirmed the importance of this sector in reducing poverty (World Bank 2007b, von Braun 2007, Food and Agriculture Organisation 2005).
Intellectual property rights protection: The plus/minus debate from a least-developed country perspective – sense and nonsense
This chapter asks whether distinctions exist between the original WTO least-developed country (LDC) members and the Article XII LDCs in respect of their obligations under the WTO Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement. The chapter examines the evidence from the protocols of accession of the seven Article XII LDCs in the context of the associated treaty dialogue in their working party reports. It finds that distinctions exist and that the commitments accepted by Article XII LDCs, in some respects, go beyond the original requirements of the TRIPs Agreements and therefore also go beyond the TRIPs obligations of original LDC members. The chapter investigates these WTO TRIPs ‘plus’ commitments and assesses their merits in relation to the sovereign determined domestic reform priorities of the Article XII members and possible implications for the rules-based multilateral trading system. It is argued that the TRIPs Agreement is a minimum standards agreement, consisting of both principles and substantive obligations, with built-in flexibilities and considerable scope for interpretation and national implementation of its provisions. WTO members may deviate from these minimum standards to the extent that they benefit from longer or shorter periods of transitional relief, which may vary according to an LDC member’s status as either an original member or Article XII member. Accession-specific commitments and associated treaty dialogue also show that there is implementation ‘flexibility’ on the basis of pre-determined action plans. The chapter finds that, in those instances where Article XII LDCs members have undertaken legally binding commitments to implement WTO-plus obligations, the substantive minimum standards of protection of the TRIPs Agreement have been increased. These WTO-plus binding commitments have been used to ‘lock in’ domestic institutional and structural reforms, based on domestic development priorities to encourage innovation and attraction of foreign direct investment, and they have served a domestic reform purpose to encourage innovation, induce foreign direct investment and strengthen the TRIPs Agreement by increasing substantive minimum standards.
Redistribution policies in a globalized world
Does the process of economic globalization curtail the capacity of national governments to pursue autonomous economic policies at home? Does the growing cross-border mobility of factors (and its associated threat of capital flight) discipline governments and limit the level of taxes and of public spending? Is economic integration inimical to redistribution at home? If trade and financial liberalization lead to higher levels of within-country inequality (or, at least, the emergence of economic sectors that bear significant economic losses), can states develop economically sustainable policies to compensate those made worse off by trade reforms? In fact, are there any particular policies that can make economic globalization and fair social policies at home (designed to share the gains from trade) compatible?
Remerciements et Avertissement
Le Rapport sur le commerce mondial 2017 a été établi sous la responsabilité générale de Xiaozhun Yi, Directeur général adjoint de l’OMC, et de Robert Koopman, Directeur de la Division de la recherche économique et des statistiques. Cette année, la rédaction du rapport a été coordonnée par Marc Bacchetta et José-Antonio Monteiro. Les auteurs du rapport sont Marc Bacchetta, Cosimo Beverelli, John Hancock, Mark Koulen, Viktor Kummritz, José-Antonio Monteiro, Roberta Piermartini, Stela Rubinova et Robert Teh (Division de la recherche économique et des statistiques).
Executive summary
More than two-thirds of world trade occurs through global value chains (GVCs), in which production crosses at least one border, and typically many borders, before final assembly. The phenomenal growth in GVC-related trade has translated into significant economic growth in many countries across the globe over the last two decades, fueled by reductions in transportation and communication costs and declining trade barriers. But, at the same time, it has contributed to distributional effects that mean that the benefits of trade have not always accrued to all, which has, at least in part, been a driver in the backlash against globalization and the rise of protectionism and threats to global and regional trade agreements. In addition, new technological developments such as robotics, big data, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are beginning to reshape and further transform GVCs. This second GVC development report takes stock of the recent evolution of GVC trade in light of these developments.
Acknowledgements
This report was jointly prepared by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Secretariat of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The crisis, policy reactions and attitudes to globalization and jobs
This chapter considers the effects of the financial crisis and subsequent recession on world labour markets. It begins by cataloguing the adverse effects on output of the sudden collapse in demand brought about by the financial crisis in what has come to be called the Great Recession. Next we look at the labour market and how employment and unemployment have been impacted and document the very different responses by country. We then move on to look at attitudinal indicators of the impact of the rising levels of joblessness that we observe across most OECD countries. We examine data on well-being and on attitudes to employment. We also examine a number of questions about the impact of globalization that respondents across many European countries were asked in 2008 and 2010. Finally, we examine the policy responses of governments, and consider what lessons might be learned from the marked differences in labour market outcomes following the recession.
Selected medium-term developments
International trade in fuels and pharmaceuticals has expanded at above-average rates in recent years, affecting the structure of global merchandise trade flows. These developments are examined here.
Avant-propos du Directeur Général
Au cours des derniers mois, le commerce a subi une contraction sans précédent depuis les années 30 par suite du ralentissement spectaculaire de l’économie mondiale provoqué avant tout par l’effondrement d’établissements financiers de premier plan. La croissance du commerce sera fortement négative cette année et il ne faut pas s’attendre à une reprise soutenue de l’économie avant 2010. Cette conjoncture défavorable met à rude épreuve l’ingéniosité politique des gouvernements de tous les pays et leur volonté de faire cause commune pour relever des défis partagés dans ce monde interdépendant. Une coopération internationale effective et des marchés ouverts sont aujourd’hui plus indispensables que jamais.
Avertissement
Le Rapport sur le commerce mondial et les opinions qui y sont exprimées relèvent de la seule responsabilité du Secrétariat de l’OMC. Ils ne prétendent pas refléter les vues des Membres de l’OMC. Les principaux auteurs du rapport souhaitent aussi exonérer ceux qui les ont aidés par leurs commentaires de toute responsabilité quant à d’éventuelles erreurs ou omissions.
Prólogo
El informe sobre el Comercio Mundial 2004 es 13 segunda publicación 3nual efe la nueva serle de 13 Secretarla de I3 OMC. Cerro ndipje el ano pasado, el informe sobre el Comercio Mundial trata de proporcionar al público la información necesaria para comprender mer los protlemas que actualmente se plantean en la esfera de 13 política comercial y contribur así a que se examinen con mayor conocimiento de C3 usa las opciones con qje se enfrentan los gobiernos. AJ igual que el año pasado, el informe empieza con un examen de la e.'clucicn reciente del comercio mundial. A ccntinjacion figuran tres ensayos mas breves: sotre preferencias comerciales, el movimiento temporal de personas físicas y las indicaciones geográficas. El tema principal del informe es este ano 13 coherencia.
Trade Reform, Managers, and Skill Intensity: Evidence from India
International trade economists have long been interested in understanding the distributional implications of globalization or trade liberalization or product market competition. One of the crucial aspects of such distributional effects, which have received a lot of attention, especially from the 1990s onward, is how such forces divide the labor pie into skilled (or nonproduction) and unskilled (or production) workers. In other words, does an increase in trade participation or exposure to international markets result in an increase in returns for skilled or less skilled workers?
WTO accession and accession to the Agreement on Government Procurement: What is the relationship? Why should WTO acceding governments also consider GPA accession?
The WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) is unique in its duality as an international trade agreement that promotes and preserves market opening and as an instrument for the promotion of good governance. The recent successful renegotiation of the GPA has enhanced its coverage so that it now provides access to markets valued at US$1.7 trillion annually. In addition, the text of the GPA has been effectively modernised, making it more relevant, economically, and simplifying its implementation. Although not a substitute for domestic procurement reforms, it is a catalytic and reinforcing factor for reforms that enhance transparency and competition internally – thereby yielding important gains for governments and citizens in terms of value for money in national procurement activities. Participation in the GPA can also promote inward foreign direct investment by signalling a country’s commitment to good governance and the fair treatment of all players under national legislation. The review in this chapter of the evidence from WTO and GPA accessions indicates that the WTO accession negotiations of Article XII members are often used to leverage increased GPA accessions. Specifically, of the members that have acceded to the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the WTO (WTO Agreement), twenty-two have undertaken GPA-related commitments, and seven subsequently joined the GPA. Out of the ten WTO members that are currently seeking accession to the GPA, nine undertook commitments related to GPA accession at the time of their WTO accessions, pursuant to Article XII of the WTO Agreement. The chapter concludes that, even though WTO accession and GPA accession are formally separate steps, the basic policy decision as to whether to join the GPA is often made long before GPA accession negotiations are started, at the time of WTO accession. This chapter provides countries and other WTO members considering taking on accession commitments with a strengthened understanding of the relevant benefits and costs.
La función del comercio y la política comercial en el proceso de desarrollo
Desde sus comienzos, el sistema internacional de comercio ha estado configurado por una mezcla de principios y pragmatismo. Las relaciones comerciales no pueden determinarse exclusivamente sobre la base de simples principios puros definidos y acordados en los comienzos. En la determinación de las posiciones adoptadas por los gobiernos intervienen inevitablemente consideraciones prácticas y políticas y expresiones particulares del interés nacional. Algunos comentaristas reflejan esa realidad cuando se refieren a una medida o un enfoque de política del gobierno como “mala economía pero buena política”. Sin embargo, gran parte de la fuerza y del éxito histórico del sistema multilateral de comercio ha residido en la disposición de los gobiernos a comprometerse previamente a observar una serie de principios y normas, sostenidos por disposiciones vinculantes para la solución de las diferencias comerciales.
A Dynamic System
Methods of production and processing, as well as the paths that food travels along from farm to fork, are continuously evolving. The standards world must be ready to adjust to ensure that food trade can continue to flow smoothly. Stakeholders will need to be prepared, able to pick up the signals that change is taking place and to steer their national frameworks accordingly.
Innovation policy, trade and the digital challenge
This section focuses on innovation policy and discusses its economic rationales and impact on innovation. For innovation to take place, new knowledge has to be created through investment in research and it then diffuses through the education system or publications, patents and interchange of ideas. When firms or governments instigate technological progress by using this knowledge, or its embodiments via inventions, to change processes, behaviours or technologies, economic growth may be affected, depending on a number of variables. Within any country, the diffusion of new technology depends on institutions, the level of economic openness and investment in education and research.
Aperçu général
Le présent rapport a pour but d’améliorer la compréhension des effets du commerce et des politiques commerciales sur l’égalité hommesfemmes, et de fournir aux responsables politiques des données attestant les avantages du commerce pour les femmes, ainsi que des solutions possibles. Le cadre conceptuel retenu montre les différents canaux de transmission par lesquels le commerce et les politiques commerciales peuvent avoir une incidence sur les femmes, dans trois rôles économiques clés: le travail, la consommation et la prise de décisions. Le rapport rassemble et analyse également de nouvelles données1 pour montrer l’impact différencié du commerce et des politiques commerciales sur les femmes et les hommes – en termes de rémunération, de consommation et de bien-être, ainsi que de qualité et de quantité d’emplois disponibles. Une nouvelle analyse empirique fondée sur ces données donne à penser que l’expansion du commerce peut inciter les pays à améliorer les droits des femmes et à accroître leur participation à l’économie.
Trade policy commitments and contingency measure
Trade agreements define rules for the conduct of trade policy. These rules must strike a balance between commitments and flexibility. Too much flexibility may undermine the value of commitments, but too little f lexibility may render the rules politically unsustainable. This tension between credible commitments and flexibility is often close to the surface during trade negotiations. For example, the question of a “special safeguard mechanism” (the extent to which developing countries would be allowed to protect farmers from import surges) was crucial in the discussion of the July 2008 mini-ministerial meeting, which sought to agree negotiating modalities – or a final blueprint – for agriculture and non-agricultural market access (NAMA).
Conclusion
The key issue for MSME financing is risk assessment, and more specifically, how to better assess the risk potential of companies that lack a long credit history. Technological tools and data-driven solutions enable firms to approach this process from a new angle. They make it possible to harness a bigger pool of data to provide greater visibility into firms’ operations and creditworthiness. Rather than a backward-looking approach to risk assessment, as in the past, data can now allow financiers to make risk assessments a real-time process.
Notes techniques
Les Membres de l’OMC sont souvent désignés sous le nom de « pays », bien que certains ne soient pas des pays au sens habituel du terme mais, officiellement, des « territoires douaniers ». La définition des groupements géographiques ou autres, dans le présent rapport, n’implique de la part du Secrétariat aucune prise de position quant au statut d’un pays ou territoire, au tracé de ses frontières ou aux droits et obligations des Membres de l’OMC dans le cadre des Accords de l’OMC. Les couleurs, tracés de frontières, dénominations et classifications figurant dans les cartes n’impliquent, de la part de l’OMC, aucun jugement quant au statut juridique ou autre d’un territoire, ni la reconnaissance ou l’acceptation d’un tracé de frontières.
Are the “Poor” Getting Globalised?
Globalization is under fire. Public perceptions and recent policy debates increasingly appear to indicate that trade liberalization has been accompanied by rising income inequality in developed and developing economies. The fact that trade liberalization creates both winners and losers has never been in question. While international trade enhances economic growth in the aggregate, the distribution of its benefits may vary by income group, location, gender, and the formal-informal divide.
Conclusions
This report has addressed four fundamental issues relating to natural resources trade. The first is how key economic features of natural resources and the manner of their exchange influence patterns of trade for this class of goods. Second, we have examined how far the absence of trade barriers provides an efficient mechanism for ensuring access to natural resources and their long-run sustainability. The third issue concerns the incentives that governments face in setting trade policy in natural resource sectors and the consequences of this incentive structure. Finally, the report has considered how international cooperation affects the management of trade in natural resources, with particular emphasis on the role of the WTO.
Regulatory impact analysis: Addressing the trade and regulatory nexus
The potential for productivity growth to generate higher incomes makes it a natural and important consideration for decision-makers. Productivity is the only driver of income growth that is unlimited, as opposed to resource exploitation or increases in population and labour force participation, each of which faces natural limits. The continuing need to stimulate productivity growth rightly remains at the forefront of government policy, and is a key priority of the Australian government.
Notas técnicas
Con frecuencia se utiliza el término “países” para hacer referencia a los Miembros de la OMC, a pesar de que algunos Miembros no son países en el sentido usual del término, sino que se trata oficialmente de “territorios aduaneros”. La definición de los grupos geográficos y de otro tipo empleada en el presente informe no implica la expresión de opinión alguna por parte de la Secretaría de la OMC sobre la condición jurídica de ningún país o territorio, sobre la delimitación de sus fronteras ni sobre los derechos y obligaciones de ningún Miembro de la OMC respecto de los Acuerdos de la OMC. Los colores, fronteras, denominaciones y clasificaciones que figuran en los mapas de la presente publicación no implican, por parte de la OMC, ningún juicio sobre la condición jurídica o de otra índole de ningún territorio, ni constituyen una aprobación o aceptación de ninguna frontera.
WTO Rules, Accession Protocols and Mega-Regionals: Complementarity and Governance in the Rules-Based Global Economy
Over the past twenty years, the rules-based global economy has been subject to a dynamic process of transformation. The trading environment has been characterized by shifts in the balance of economic power, emerging structures and rapid changes in global and regional alliances. Since its establishment in 1995, the WTO has sought to adapt to these global trends. The 2017 Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), the 2015 Nairobi Decisions on Agriculture, the 2015 expansion of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA) and twenty years of cumulative WTO accessions acquis are all part of this process of constant adaptation by the WTO to a rapidly changing environment. However, after the Seattle Ministerial meeting in 1999, free trade agreements (FTAs) and regional trade agreements (RTAs) mushroomed. The 'spaghetti-bowl’ consequences and the continuing proliferation of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) and counter-PTAs have created challenges and opportunities for the rules-based multilateral trading system. Several questions have been raised, revolving around the compatibility and the discriminatory and trade diversion effects of such agreements. Are these agreements building blocks or stumbling blocks for the multilateral trading system? Moreover, the emergence of mega-regional RTAs (MRTAs), in particular the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), have called into question, in some quarters, the power and relevance of the WTO at large. This chapter examines the core question of whether mega-regionalism (and FTAs by implication) poses an existential risk to the multilateral trading system and argues that the answer is ‘no’. The negotiating results from FTAs, including in their mega-regional forms, and trade multilateralism can coexist in a constructive, healthy and competitive relationship and both are essential for the governance of the multipolar twenty-first-century global economy. To substantiate this conclusion, the chapter reviews the WTO accessions acquis and compares it to the provisions of the TPP, without pre-judging its future. The comparative analysis is conducted across several areas: market access; trade rules (bilateral/plurilateral/multilateral); trade negotiations as an instrument for domestic reforms; and discriminatory effects. The results of the analysis point to areas of significant complementarity and mutual supportiveness between WTO accession acquis and the TPP, and different degrees of trade liberalization in certain sectors. The accessions acquis demonstrates a process of mutually supportive coexistence between bilateral and plurilateral negotiations and the multilateral legal and policy framework of the WTO. The scope and quality of accession negotiations results are comparable to results from PTAs, including MRTAs, and go further to show greater robustness and durability.
Le programme de Doha pour le développement
L’un des objectifs sous-jacents de l’OMC est de promouvoir le développement économique par une participation effective au commerce mondial. Trois aspects de la structure et des règles de l’OMC sont pertinents s’agissant de la manière dont les pays en développement peuvent tirer davantage profit de leur participation au système commercial. Premièrement, les règles elles-mêmes, avec les exceptions autorisées et leurs interprétations, sont le fondement du système et jouent un rôle clé pour déterminer les conditions et possibilités d’échange. Deuxièmement se pose la question de la couverture du système. Il n’existe pas d’exemple de questions dont l’OMC se serait saisie et qu’elle aurait écartées; il s’agit donc ici de l’inclusion de nouveaux domaines. Troisièmement, le type de protection auquel se heurtent les exportations d’un pays contribue aussi pour beaucoup à définir les conditions et les possibilités d’échanges. En résumé, la nature des règles de l’OMC, leur portée et les conditions d’accès aux marchés sont les trois grands domaines qui déterminent la qualité et l’utilité de l’OMC pour ses Membres. Comme il fallait s’y attendre, chacun de ces trois aspects occupe une place importante dans le Programme de Doha pour le développement.
The 2013 WTO accession of Lao PDR: Specific commitments and the integration of leastdeveloped countries into the global economy
When Lao PDR applied for membership of the WTO in 1997, it used the WTO accession process as a tool to implement its decision to establish a market economy and fully integrate into the world economy. Although at the outset market access was not considered to be the principal benefit to be derived from WTO accession, Lao PDR was aware that WTO membership would give its economy additional security and predictability. WTO accession negotiations allowed Lao PDR to apply international best practices and to align its trade policy with the principles of nondiscrimination and transparency. Adaptation to international trade requirements is a longer-term challenge, and post-accession challenges remain, but the benefits are significant and worthwhile.
Las tecnologías digitales y sus efectos económicos en el comercio
En esta sección se estudia la transformación del comercio internacional que se está produciendo debido a las nuevas tecnologías, que están creando nuevas oportunidades para conseguir un sistema de comercio más inclusivo y están planteando nuevos desafíos. Al comienzo de la sección se examina la influencia de las tecnologías digitales en los costos del comercio internacional. A continuación, se analizan los cambios que las tecnologías digitales causan en la naturaleza de los intercambios, en la forma en que se lleva a cabo el comercio y en los agentes y el contenido del comercio. Por último, se cuantifican las posibles repercusiones de algunas tendencias importantes en el desarrollo tecnológico, y se formulan proyecciones a largo plazo sobre el comercio internacional empleando el Modelo de Comercio Mundial de la OMC.
Algunos acontecimientos y cuestiones comerciales
El Acuerdo sobre los Textiles y el Vestido (ATV) expiró el 1º de enero de 2005. Se manifestó gran interés, así como inquietud en las repercusiones que la eliminación de las restricciones contingentarias podría tener para la producción y el comercio. Era evidente para la mayoría de los observadores que habría quienes saldrían ganando gracias a la liberalización adicional en tanto que otros saldrían perdiendo. Es demasiado pronto para decir cómo será el mercado después del período relativamente breve en que podemos basar nuestras observaciones, pero en esta nota se examina lo que sabemos hasta ahora de la estructura del comercio desde que se eliminaron (buena parte de) las restricciones cuantitativas. Hay que hacer una salvedad: no cabe duda de que la expiración del ATV influyó en la estructura del comercio observada en 2005, pero no hemos elaborado un enfoque analítico riguroso para examinar los demás factores que también podrían influir en ella.
Recent Trends in Global Value Chains
The last few years have been challenging for globalization. While the world has benefited from the fragmented networks of production-sharing known as global value chains (GVCs), concerns are being raised over their risks. Chapter 1 of the Global Value Chain Development Report 2019 pointed to a rise in protectionism in general and a brewing trade conflict between the United States (US) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in particular. More obstacles have since emerged from the sudden and simultaneous closure of borders due to the COVID-19 pandemic that exposed vulnerabilities in some supply chains, rattling policymakers (Chapter 5). Despite these challenges, GVCs—for supporters and detractors alike—remain a reality that cannot be ignored. Indeed, the very vaccines crucial to ending the COVID-19 pandemic rely on multinational partnerships for the over 200 components that go into them (Irwin 2021).
Resumen
El Informe del Comercio Mundial 2006 comienza con un breve resumen de las tendencias más destacadas del comercio internacional, basado en un Informe anterior de la Secretaría publicado en el mes de abril. También ofrecemos breves comentarios analíticos sobre algunas cuestiones comerciales de actualidad, que este año se refieren a las recientes tendencias en el comercio de los textiles y el vestido, un examen de la evolución de los pagos internacionales de regalías y derechos, la evolución del comercio de los países menos adelantados y un análisis de los efectos de los desastres naturales y los actos de terrorismo sobre las corrientes comerciales internacionales. El tema básico del análisis que se aborda en el Informe del Comercio Mundial 2006 es el de las subvenciones. En el Informe se examina esta esfera de políticas y se estudia la manera en que se definen las subvenciones, qué es lo que puede decir la teoría económica acerca de ellas, por qué los gobiernos las utilizan, cuáles son los principales sectores en los que se aplican las subvenciones y la función del Acuerdo sobre la OMC en la regulación de las subvenciones en el contexto del comercio internacional.
Multilateralizing regionalism: Lessons from the EU experience in relaxing rules of origin
Over the last fifteen years or so the world trading system has witnessed the dramatic emergence and rise of regional or preferential trading agreements (RTAs/PTAs). This appears to be a significant shift away from the principle of multilateralism that the world trading system has been built around since the Second World War. There are a number of posited reasons for this emergence of regionalism, which between them suggest that liberalizing trade regionally rather than multilaterally may be easier to achieve, and that regional agreements may be able to ‘reach the parts that multilateralism cannot reach’ – i.e. that they might be able to go significantly further in key policy areas.
What do we know about skills and trade?
The level of skills of a country’s workforce can influence its comparative advantage. One theory of comparative advantage, predicts that countries endowed with more skilled labour would be likely to specialize in the production and export of relatively more skill-intensive products. The dispersion of skill levels also affects countries’ comparative advantage.
South Africa
Trade policy-making is a complex affair. In all countries a host of factors influence the outcome, with the mix varying according to domestic circumstances and the relationship of the country concerned with the global economy. As the introductory chapter of this book attests, strictly state-centric explanations regarding how trade policy decisions are made are no longer sufficient in a world where international trade negotiations increasingly impinge on domestic policies. Therefore, a nuanced understanding of how trade policy is made is required, and must interrogate the roles of non-state actors (NSAs), institutions and ideas, and their interactions with each other, in shaping preferences and policy.
Conclusion
Ce rapport se proposait de couvrir un vaste domaine. Le résumé analytique sur lequel il s’ouvre expose les grandes lignes des principaux secteurs abordés et les observations essentielles faites sur chacun d’eux. Un document de ce type est, en soi, un résumé de questions complexes et doit s’appuyer largement sur d’autres travaux analytiques plus approfondis, auxquels il a été fait référence dans le corps du texte. Beaucoup des questions évoquées ici sont des «cibles mouvantes», en particulier lorsqu’elles concernent des domaines où les Membres de l’OMC font en permanence des choix stratégiques qui influent sur les résultats des discussions et sont activement engagés dans une négociation commerciale d’envergure.
¿Pueden las cadenas de bloques revolucionar el comercio internacional?
Son muchos los titulares en los que se sostiene que la cadena de bloques puede revolucionar diversas esferas del comercio internacional, desde la financiación del comercio hasta los procedimientos aduaneros y la propiedad intelectual. El carácter transparente, descentralizado e inalterable de la cadena de bloques ha despertado el interés de los agentes privados -y de los Gobiernos- en explorar las posibilidades que ofrece esta tecnología para mejorar la eficiencia de los procesos comerciales, por lo que ya se han realizado multitud de estudios de viabilidad y proyectos piloto utilizando la cadena de bloques en prácticamente todos los ámbitos del comercio internacional.
The ITA and the international digital economy
Over the past 20 years, the ITA has led to the wider use of new technology by cutting the costs of key ICT goods. The ITA expansion further opens up trade on 201 new-generation IT products and technology.
One-page case summaries
A one-page case summary is devoted to each of the 316 GATT disputes identified by this publication.
¿Cómo prepararse para la transformación del comercio asociada a la tecnología?
En la presente sección examinamos cómo puede la cooperación comercial internacional ayudar a los Gobiernos de todo el mundo a aprovechar las tecnologías digitales y las nuevas oportunidades comerciales que estas generarán tanto para las empresas grandes como para las pequeñas. En la sección D.1 se resumen las principales oportunidades y retos asociados a la expansión del comercio electrónico. En la sección D.2 se ofrecen ejemplos de políticas que aplican los Gobiernos para explotar esas oportunidades y abordar esos retos. Por último, en la sección D.3 se analiza en qué medida (y de qué manera) puede la cooperación internacional ayudar a los Gobiernos a explotar los beneficios derivados del comercio electrónico y a afrontar los retos, sin renunciar al logro de sus objetivos de política pública actuales y futuros.