Trade monitoring

The October 2026 update of the WTO’s “Global Trade Outlook and Statistics” presents the WTO Secretariat’s revised forecasts for world trade in 2026 and 2027. Breakdowns of merchandise and commercial services trade by sector and region are provided, together with details on leading traders. An analytical chapter looks at the latest trends in AI-enabling goods trade. 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 https://stats.wto.org/.

This report covers WTO activities in 2025 and the early part of 2026. At the start of the report, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala reflects on the current challenges facing world trade and the role of the WTO. The report also covers the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference, which took place from 26 to 30 March 2026. The World Trade Organization deals with the global rules of trade between WTO members. Its main function is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible.