Economic research and trade policy analysis
The value of the Committee on Agriculture
What is the value of the WTO Committee on Agriculture? How much trade do countries talk about at the WTO? Do low-income countries participate less than they should in the work of the Committee? How important are issues not covered by notifications? What are the most important issues on which to focus negotiations?
The Shifting Contours of Trade in Knowledge
This paper charts the evolution and diversification of trade in knowledge that has taken place in the quarter-century since the WTO TRIPS Agreement came into force. Entirely new markets have come into being potentially redefining the very character of 'trade'.
Illicit Trade and Infectious Diseases
We collect a novel dataset that covers about 130 countries and the six four-digit live animal categories in the Harmonized System (HS) over a sixteen-year period to study the link between illicit trade in live animals and threat to animal health from infectious diseases.
Disclaimer
Any views given in this dictionary on WTO agreements provisions panel and Appellate Body reports or any other information provided by the WTO are the sole responsibility of the author. They do not necessarily represent the views of WTO Members the WTO Secretariat or the Appellate Body. As such the definitions in this dictionary do not constitute authoritative interpretations of the legal texts of the WTO. They are presented for illustrative purposes only.
Dictionary of Trade Policy Terms, 6th Edition
The dictionary is an accessible guide to the vocabulary used in trade negotiations. It explains about 3000 terms and concepts in simple language. Its main emphasis is on the multilateral trading system represented by the agreements under the World Trade Organization (WTO). In addition it covers many of the trade-related activities outcomes and terms used in other international organizations such as the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the OECD. The last decade has seen considerable attention devoted to trade and investment facilitation sustainability and the formation of free-trade areas in all parts of the world. This dictionary allocates generous space to the vocabulary associated with such developments. Additional areas covered include emerging trade issues and issues based particularly on developing-country concerns.
Preface
This Dictionary of Trade Policy Terms is now in its sixth edition. It has again grown larger. It now contains well over 3000 entries and cross-references. Many of these entries are new. In other cases the changes occurring since the preparation of the last edition have required a complete rewriting of the entry. A great many have needed updating to a greater or lesser extent. I have made an attempt at being reasonably comprehensive but no doubt there is always more that could be included.
Foreword
The global economy is going through unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken the world threatening the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in both developed and developing economies with a particularly devastating impact on small businesses. World trade plummeted in the first half the year and despite signs of trade bouncing back WTO estimates in October 2020 still forecast a 9.2 per cent decline in the volume of world merchandise trade for 2020.
Introduction
No doubt the world looks a little different today than it did at the end of 2019 when we first published the Periodic Table of DLT in Trade. A natural year’s worth of progression has been both accelerated and in some areas stunted by the forces of the COVID-19 pandemic the widespread and long-lasting implications of which still remain unknown.
Standardization initiatives
A crucial step towards end-to-end trade digitalization is creating an ecosystem that allows for seamless exchanges of data between existing platforms. This requires developing and implementing globally accepted digital standards for trade. As these initiatives play a crucial role in shaping the landscape within which each DLT-in-trade project operates standardization initiatives have been included in more detail in this updated version. To this end these initiatives will be separated into standalone sections with a corresponding tables and each project will be examined more deeply.
The COVID-19 pandemic: impact on DLT projects in trade
COVID-19 has uprooted processes and established outlooks in many industries around the world. To gain a detailed understanding of the impact that the global pandemic has had on DLT projects in trade the WTO and TFG conducted a supplementary survey of projects featured in the 2020 Periodic table update.
Blockchain and DLT in Trade
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digitalization in all sectors including international trade which remains hindered by inefficient paper-intensive processes. Of particular interest for trade digitalization are projects leveraging distributed ledger technology (DLT) – commonly referred to as Blockchain. The tamper-proof and decentralized nature of DLT makes it useful for breaking the silos that constrain international trade. Many projects that were at an exploratory stage when the first “Blockchain and DLT in Trade” publication was launched in November 2019 have matured and reached the production stage. This publication looks at the current situation. The publication updates the original “periodic table” of DLT projects in trade launched in November 2019 by the International Chamber of Commerce the WTO and Trade Finance Global a trade finance platform at the WTO Global Trade and Blockchain Forum. The periodic table provides a means of differentiating between the countless initiatives projects consortia and companies operating in the broad space that can be described by “DLT in trade”. While no simplified diagram of the landscape can encapsulate the minutiae of each project the table provides a starting point for understanding and analyzing the industry. This publication maps 44 projects related to trade finance insurance know your customer shipping/logistics and supply chain digitalization of trade documents and trade processes as well as other projects such as marketplaces and assesses their level of maturity. A new section on standardization initiatives provides an overview of projects that work towards creating digital standards relevant for trade to drive digital interoperability. The report also showcases the results of a supplementary survey analyzing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the projects featured.
Future Resilience to Diseases of Animal Origin
The WTO Secretariat has published a new information note about trade issues associated with the spread of diseases of animal origin. The note maps out the international framework in place to address these issues along with ongoing efforts to ensure safe trade in animals and animal products including in wildlife.
Patent-Related Actions taken in WTO Members in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
COVID-19 caused by SARS-Cov-2 was declared to be a pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020. Since then the issue of the relationship between patent protection and the development of and access to medical treatments and technologies – a longstanding and enduringly important public policy issue – has become central to the debate on the linkages between IP innovation access and public health between stakeholders with divergent interests.