WHO We Are ?

WHAT We Do ?

From GATT to WTO

From India’s Perspective

ImportantAgreements

WHAT We Stand for ?

From GATT to WTO

GATT(General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade) – Commenced in 1948

Bretton woods Institutions (World Bank and International Monetary

Fund)

Negotiated Institution for trade –(International trade Organization- 1st

Jan, 1995)

WHO are we ?

It is an organization for trade opening.

It is a forum for governments to negotiate trade agreements.

It is a place for them to settle trade disputes.

It operates a system of trade rules.

Essentially, the WTO is a place where member governments try to sort out the trade problems they face with each other.

The WTO was born out of negotiations, and everything the WTO does is the result of negotiations.

WHO are we ?

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations.

Agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments.

The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.

Formed on: January 1st, 1995

160 members (97% of world’s population) since 26 June 2014.

Headquarter : Geneva, Switzerland

Director-General : Roberto Azevêdo

WHAT we do ?

The WTO is run by its member governments.

All major decisions are made by the membership as a whole, either by ministers (who usually meet at least once every two years) or by their ambassadors or delegates (who meet regularly in Geneva).

While the WTO is driven by its member states, it could not function without its Secretariat to coordinate the activities.

The Secretariat employs over 600 staff, and its experts — lawyers, economists, statisticians and communications experts — assist WTO members on a daily basis to ensure, among other things, that negotiations progress smoothly, and that the rules of international trade are correctly applied and enforced.

WHAT we do ?

Implementing WTO agreements and administering the international trade.

Reviewing trade related economic policies of member countries

Acting as forum of trade liberalization

Cooperating with world bank and IMF and it’s associates for establishing coordination in global trade policy making.

Settling trade relating disputes among member nations of it’s dispute settlement body(DSB).

Technical assistance and training for developing countries.

Maintaining trade related database.

WHAT we do ?

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Trading Principles

WTO Trading Principles

Non Discrimination

Most Favoured Nation

National

Treatment

Policy

ReciprocityBinding, Enforceable

CommitmentsTransparency Safety Valves

WHAT we stand for ?

Negotiating the reduction or elimination of obstacles to trade

Administering and monitoring the application of the WTO's agreed rules for trade in goods, trade in services, and trade-related intellectual property rights

Monitoring ,Reviewing , Maintaining Transparency and Settling Dispute of trade policies between our members

Assisting the process of accession of some 30 countries who are not yet members of the organization .

Conducting economic research and collecting and disseminating trade data in support of the WTO's other main activities.

Explaining to and educating the public about the WTO, its mission and its activities.

WHAT we stand for ?

More Open

Non Discrimination

Predictable

&

Transparent

More Competitive

Environment protection

Beneficial for less developed

countries

Important Agreements

Important Agreements

Frame work starts with basic principles

1. GENERAL AGREMENT ON TARRIFS & TRADE (GATT)

2. GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TRADE IN SERVICES (GATS)

3. TRADE RELATED ASPECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS (TRIPS)

4. TRADE RELATED INVESTMENT MEASURES (TRIMS)

TRIPS TRIMS GATS

Literal Work To Facilitate Investments Movement Of Persons

Artistic Work To Liberalize World Trade Air Transport

Industrial Property To Strike Out Investment Measures Which Can Create Hindrance

Financial Services

Taking Into Account Needs Of Developing And Least Developing Countries

Shipping

Agreement on Agriculture

The WTO Agreement on Agriculture was one of the main agreements which were negotiated during the Uruguay Round.

The objective is “To reform trade in agriculture and to make policies more market oriented”

It contains provisions in 3 broad areas of agriculture.

1. Market access

This includes tariffication, tariff reduction and access opportunities. Tariffication means that all non-tariff barriers such as...1. quotas.2. variable levies.3. minimum import prices.4. discretionary licensing.5. state trading measures.

Agreement on Agriculture

2. Domestic support.

It measures that have a minimum impact on trade also known as “Green Box policies”

It includes general government services like-As in the area of Research, disease control, infrastructure and food security

It Also includes direct payment to producers in form of income support etc.

3. Export subsidies.

The Agreement contains provisions regarding members commitment to reduce Export Subsidies.

Developed countries are required to reduce their export subsidy expenditure by 36%.

For developing countries the percentage cuts are 24%.

TRIPS

It deals with the protection & enforcement of “Trade-Related intellectual propertyrights”. It establishes minimum levels of protection that each government has to giveto the intellectual property of fellow WTO members

DEALS IN :

How basic principles of the trading system and other international intellectualproperty agreements should be applied

How to give adequate protection to intellectual property rights

How countries should enforce those rights adequately in their own territories

How to settle disputes on intellectual property between members of the WTO

Special transitional arrangements during the period when the new system is beingintroduced.

TRIMS

Trade related Investment Measures does not provide any new language , but It concentrates on 2 major articles. Article III & Article IX - which talks about National

Treatment and Trade Restrictions respectively.

ARTICLE III

● National treatment of importedproduct, unless specified in otheragreements.

● Subjects the purchase or use byan enterprise of imported products to lessfavorable conditions than the purchase or use of domestic products.

ARTICLE XI

● Prohibition of quantitative restrictions on imports and exports.

● Part of the general trend in textiles and agriculture to phase out the use of quantitative restrictions.

GATS

The General Agreement On Trade In Services(GATS) which extends multilateral rules anddiscipline to services is regarded as a Landmark achievement of the Uruguay Round.

In short ,GATT covers the four modes of international delivery of services

1) Cross-border supply : This refers to the delivery of service from the territory ofone country to the territory of the other country by crossing international border

2) Commercial Presence : foreign service-providing companies establish their local subsidiaryoffices (affiliates) to supply services in the domestic market

3) Consumption Abroad(Tourism) : consumer moves to a foreign country to getservices, such as tourism, education, medical treatment etc

4) Movement of personal(entry and temporary stay of foreign consultants) :The service supplying foreign person moves to the host territory on temporary basis

Anti-Dumping Agreement

A product is considered to be dumped if the export price is less than the price charged for the same product in the exporting country, or it is sold for less than its cost of production.

The WTO agreement on anti-dumping allows governments to act against dumping where there is genuine (‘material’) injury to the competing domestic industry.

From India’s Perspective

ADVANTAGES

Increases in foreign trade

Increase in agriculture exports

Increase in inflow of foreign investment

Improvement in services

Benefits for clothing and textile industry

Restricts dumping

Promotion to research on patents

DISADVANTAGES

Disadvantage to agriculture sector- reduction in subsidy- Import of food grains

Loss to domestic industries

Patent of Indian herbs by foreign companies

Tramples human and labor rights

undermines local level decision making and national sovereignty

Kashyap Shah

Vinita Goswami

Vaibhav Goyal

Rohit Kumar

Praneeta Kaul

Pradeep Nyamgowda

Ashutosh Gurtoo

Prepared & Presented By,Group- India : Section Charming Cee