Trade monitoring
Premio OMC de Ensayo para Jóvenes Economistas
En 2011, un brasileño y un estadounidense compartieron el Premio OMC de Ensayo para Jóvenes Economistas. El Jurado Académico eligió a los economistas Rafael Dix-Carneiro, un brasileño que trabaja en los Estados Unidos, y a Kyle Handley, por sus artículos sobre el comercio y los mercados de trabajo y sobre la incertidumbre de la política comercial. Ambos autores recibieron ex aequo el premio en metálico.
The economics of subsidies
The purpose of this Section is to assist the reader to better understand the twin questions of why governments use subsidies and how subsidies impact international trade. As is frequently the case in economic analysis, the starting point for what follows is a “benchmark” economy featuring perfectly competitive markets. This approach provides the basis for general insights into the impact of policy interventions such as subsidies. As discussed further below, under the condition of a perfectly competitive market, no case can be made for a subsidy. Introducing a subsidy or some other government measure within a perfect market framework will be inefficient and welfare-diminishing. But if the perfect market assumption is relaxed, situations may arise where a government measure like a subsidy improves welfare. An efficient subsidy would correct a market failure, bringing social and private costs and benefits into alignment.
World trade in 2011: Introduction
The volume of world merchandise trade rose 5.0 per cent in 2011, accompanied by global output growth of 2.4 per cent. This marked a significant slowdown from 2010, when trade advanced 13.8 per cent and output expanded by 3.8 per cent.
Trade Policy Reviews in 2012
The WTO conducted 20 Trade Policy Reviews in 2012 to examine the trade policies and practices of 26 WTO members. The dates of the reviews and the countries covered are shown on the map. Further information, including the Chair’s concluding remarks for each review, can be found on the WTO website: www.wto.org/tpr.
Dispute settlement activity in 2016
The WTO’s dispute settlement system had its busiest year so far, averaging 22 cases per month where active proceedings are under way. These are cases where a panel or arbitration has been composed and where preparations are ongoing for the finalization of a panel, arbitration or Appellate Body report. The Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) received 17 requests for consultations, the first step in the dispute settlement process, and established eight new panels. The dispute settlement system began to benefit from measures introduced to address the increasing workload it faces.
Preface
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.
Secrétariat de l’OMC
Le Secrétariat est dirigé par le Directeur général, M. Roberto Azevêdo, qui a pris ses fonctions le 1er septembre 2013 pour un mandat de quatre ans. Les Membres de l’OMC sont convenus de désigner M. Azevêdo pour un second mandat commençant en septembre 2017, après un processus de sélection mené à bien à la fin de 2016. Les quatre directeurs généraux adjoints ci-après ont pris leurs fonctions le 1er octobre 2013: Yonov Frederick Agah (Nigéria), Karl Brauner (Allemagne), David Shark (États-Unis) et Yi Xiaozhun (Chine) (voir la figure 1). Le nombre de fonctionnaires de l’OMC a diminué en 2016, passant de 647 à 628; un processus de recrutement est en cours pour pourvoir les postes vacants.
Foreword
The World Trade Report 2004 is the second annual publication in the WTO Secretariat’s new series. As I indicated last year, the World Trade Report seeks to deepen public understanding of current trade policy issues and to contribute to more informed consideration of the options facing governments. Like last year, the Report begins with a review of recent world trade developments. This is followed by three shorter essays – on trade preferences, the temporary movement of natural persons, and geographical indications. The main topic of the Report this year is coherence.
Supply chains and trade finance
The issue of finance is an integral one in the supply chain context, given that supply chains embody flows of information, capital, goods, and labour. The concept of credit chains, reviewed here, directly addresses this. The supply chain concept has traditionally tended to emphasise the tangible/material dimensions of the chain. As a result, the financial dimension had been relatively neglected in the literature. This changed with the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. As both a potential aggravator and victim of the crisis, trade finance and supply chains became the subject of a new and rapidly growing body of literature. Previously, the subject had been largely addressed in the context of operations research and economic development. We review findings from all research areas in the literature, and observe significant merit in the credit chain concept of supply chain financial flows. Migration of the concept to other areas of supply chain research could potentially address financial dimensions of supply chains that are otherwise underemphasised in the literature.