Introduction

On 1 January 2008 the multilateral trading system will celebrate its sixtieth anniversary. The World Trade Report 2007 marks the occasion with a retrospective look at what has been learned from those six decades of international trade cooperation. It attempts to identify both what lessons are to be drawn from past experience and the nature of challenges to come. To address these issues, the report adopts an eclectic approach, drawing from the economic literature as well as from economic history, international relations or legal approaches. The objective of the report is to explore the lessons to be learned from the rich history of change and institutional adaptation of the multilateral system.