Trade monitoring
Introduction
The Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM) was first established on a trial basis by the GATT contracting parties in April 1989. The Mechanism became a permanent feature of the World Trade Organization under the Marrakesh Agreement which established the WTO in January 1995.
Trade, debt and finance
Senior WTO officials continued to work with multilateral development banks to facilitate the provision of trade finance, particularly for developing countries. A decision by the Basel Committee to modify leverage rules in order to support trade was hailed by Director-General Roberto Azevêdo as “good news for developing countries”. The WTO Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance continued its examination of the relationship between exchange rates and trade.
Contact with the business community
The WTO’s annual Public Forum attracted a significant increase in business representatives in 2015, showing the strong interest of business groups and companies in contributing to the debate about WTO activities. The business community was also well-represented at the Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. Twenty-three of the non-governmental organizations accredited for the event were business organizations.
Merchandise trade and trade in commercial services
World merchandise exports fell by 3 per cent in 2016 in value terms. This decrease was mostly caused by the continuing decline in exports of fuels and mining products (-14 per cent in 2016). The marked decline in commodity prices in 2015 mostly halted in 2016, with the exception of energy prices. The export prices of all other major commodity groups, apart from food and beverages, decreased slightly but the decline was less than in 2015.
Report by Samoa
The Treaty establishing the East African Community (EAC) came into force on 7 July 2000, thus a new beginning of the revived EAC. The EAC has six partner States, namely, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. The EAC Customs Union came into force on 1 January 2005 and the Common Market on 1 July 2010. English is the official language of communication within the community policy structures.