Trade monitoring

As the United States Government undergoes its fourteenth Trade Policy Review—more than any other World Trade Organization (WTO) Member—the United States is committed to reforming the global trading system in ways that lead to fairer outcomes for U.S. workers and businesses, and more efficient markets for countries around the world. U.S. trade policy is driven by a pragmatic determination to use the leverage available to the world’s largest economy to secure these objectives. Our trade policy is steadfastly focused on the national interest, including retaining and using U.S. sovereign power to act in defense of that interest.

Le commerce et la technologie sont étroitement liés. De l’invention de la roue au chemin de fer et à l’avènement de la conteneurisation, la technologie a toujours joué un rôle clé en façonnant notre manière de faire du commerce – et ce phénomène s’accélère comme jamais auparavant. Nous vivons une période de changement technologique sans précédent, et les diverses innovations basées sur Internet pourraient avoir un impact majeur. Par exemple, l’Internet des objets, l’intelligence artificielle, l’impression 3D et la chaîne de blocs pourraient transformer profondément ce qui est échangé, par qui et comment.

Different aspects of the development process have been emphasized by the many scholars and observers who have ventured into this field. The seminal work of Sen (1999) identifies freedom as both the primary end and principal means of development. The Brundtland Commission stressed that development must involve the care and nurturing of the environment for future generations. Others have focused particularly on poverty reduction and the empowerment of poor people. All these approaches consider economic growth a vital component of the development process, while emphasizing that development is about more than growth.

WTO dispute settlement continues to be the subject of extensive scrutiny by both trade practitioners and academics. Not surprisingly, most of this analysis is legal in nature, touching upon the various arguments that have been put forward by parties to disputes and the legal foundations upon which these disputes are adjudicated. While legal and procedural issues remain the domain of trade lawyers, economists are being called upon with increased frequency on matters that call for economic interpretation or quantification. This should hardly be surprising given that multilateral trade rules reflect key economic principles such as comparative advantage, and that many of the terms in WTO Agreements, which are important in the resolution of disputes, have an economic basis. It may also have to do with the fact that increasing numbers of disputes are reaching the implementation phase, in which arbitrators need to quantify the allowable level of retaliation, as will be further explained below.

The WTO began life on 1 January 1995 but its trading system is half a century older. Since 1948, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) had provided the rules for the system. Whereas GATT had mainly dealt with trade in goods, the WTO and its agreements now cover trade in services, and in traded inventions, creations and designs (intellectual property).

The TRIPS Council continued to promote transparency in WTO members’ intellectual property (IP) systems and reviewed implementation of the TRIPS Agreement. It discussed access to medicines, biodiversity, traditional knowledge, the patentability of life forms, biotechnology and technical cooperation, among other topics. The Council extended until January 2033 a waiver on least-developed countries (LDCs) having to apply TRIPS provisions on pharmaceutical patents. It also recommended a parallel waiver of LDC obligations regarding two other TRIPS provisions regarding pharmaceutical products. The Council discussed aspects of innovation policy, including the role of IP in financing innovation.

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.

En 2014, le Directeur général Roberto Azevêdo a rencontré la Commission du commerce international du Parlement européen pour discuter du programme de l’après-Bali. Une séance parlementaire sur ce thème a été organisée en octobre lors du Forum public. Le Secrétariat de l’OMC a continué à tenir les parlementaires informés des questions relatives à l’OMC. Il a aussi organisé deux ateliers régionaux à l’intention des parlementaires arabes et latino-américains.

Trade facilitation is critical to reducing trade costs, which remain high despite the steep decline in the cost of transportation, improvements in information and communication technology, and the reduction of trade barriers in many countries.