Overview of Developments in the International Trading Environment: Annual Report by the Director-General

The Director-General’s annual overview of trade-related developments discussed on 12 December at a meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body shows that trade restrictions by WTO members continue at historically high levels. Between mid-October 2018 and mid-October 2019, the trade coverage of import-restrictive measures implemented by members was estimated at USD 747 billion. This is the highest trade coverage Read More

WTO members show restraint in trade restrictions despite ongoing economic uncertainties: WTO members introduced fewer trade-restrictive measures from mid-October 2016 to mid-October 2017 compared to the previous year, according to the Director-General’s annual overview report on trade-related developments presented to members on 4 December. WTO members continued to implement more trade-facilitating t Read More

WTO report finds no acceleration in trade restrictions but slow pace for barrier removal: WTO members have continued to show some restraint in introducing new trade-restrictive measures and have also adopted a record number of trade facilitation measures during the period of October 2014 to October 2015 according to the Director-General’s annual report on trade-related developments. However, the report, which wa Read More

Azevêdo’s health-check on global trade: Growth recovering but restrictions on the rise: Director-General Roberto Azevêdo, in presenting his first global trade-monitoring report to WTO members on 17 February 2014, said that trade growth projections for this year are “much improved, hovering somewhere between 4.0% and 4.5%.” However, he said “407 new restrictive measures were reported during the review perio Read More

Lamy calls for trade opening to continue as global economic outlook worsens: Director-General Pascal Lamy, in his annual report to WTO members on developments in the international trading environment, published on 21 November 2011, told members that “in a context of greater economic uncertainty and rising global risks, it is all the more important that the process of global trade opening continues”. In the light of a worse Read More

Lamy calls for exit strategies on temporary trade restrictions and subsidies: Director-General Pascal Lamy, in his annual report on trade and trade-related developments in 2009, said that “although there have been instances of slippage, in general terms the world economy is about as open for trade today as it was before the crisis started.” He called on members “to devise and announce exit strategies to remove trade restricti Read More