Market access provisions in regional trade agreements

Regional trade agreements (RTAs) have proliferated over the past decade around the world to cover nearly half of global trade. The number of RTAs notified to the WTO is approaching 200, while the total number of RTAs around the world exceeds 300. The global RTA spree has forged a veritable spaghetti bowl of multiple and often overlapping agreements. The various rules included in each RTA entangle the bowl further. Besides market access of goods, many RTAs today include provisions in such trade disciplines as services, investment, standards, intellectual property, and competition rules, as well as a host of issues not directly related to trade, such as the environment.