Overview of Developments in the International Trading Environment - Annual Report by the Director-General (2017)

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 than trade-restrictive measures. The estimated trade coverage of the import-facilitating measures recorded in the review period was more than double the import-restricting measures. In addition, the import-facilitating measures implemented during the review period in the context of the expanded Information Technology Agreement (ITA) amounted to around US$ 385 billion.