Foreword by the WTO Director-General

This year’s World Trade Report takes an in-depth fresh look at preferential trade. The choice of this topic reflects two significant trends in international trade relations, both of which carry far-reaching implications for the multilateral trading system. The first and most readily evident of these is the continuing growth and increasing prominence of preferential trade agreements (PTAs). In the last two decades, the number of PTAs has increased more than four-fold, to around 300 active agreements today. There is no reason to assume that PTAs will cease to grow in number or that they will not form part of the long-term tapestry of international trade relations. Secondly, the content of PTAs continues to evolve and deepen, reflecting important changes in the world economy. This too raises vital questions about the focus and reach of the WTO, and the value assigned by governments to globally-based trade relations.