OVERVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS IN THE
INTERNATIONAL TRADING ENVIRONMENT
MINUTES OF THE MEETING
6 December 2022
Chairperson: H.E. Mr Ángel Villalobos Rodríguez (Mexico)
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON
1. Good afternoon and welcome to this meeting of the TPRB, which was
convened by Airgram WTO/AIR/TPR/136 on 22 November 2022.
2.
The purpose of
this meeting is for Members and Observers of the Trade Policy Review Body to
undertake their annual overview of developments in the international trading
environment which are having an impact on the multilateral trading system, as
provided for in Paragraph G of Annex 3 of the Marrakesh Agreement.
3.
As mentioned in
the Airgram, today's discussion is assisted by the Director‑General's Annual
Report which provides a comprehensive overview of the overall state of global
trade, of significant developments in the implementation of trade policies by
WTO Members and Observers, and an up‑date on several trade policy issues
affecting the trading system for the period between mid‑October 2021 and
mid‑October 2022. The Report was circulated in document WT/TPR/OV/25 on 22 November 2022.
4.
Before discussing
the Report, let me briefly recall the purpose of the Trade Policy Review
Mechanism. According to Annex 3 of the Marrakesh Agreement, the TPRM goal
is to achieve greater transparency in, and understanding of, Members' trade and
trade‑related policies and measures. The TPRM is not intended to serve as a
basis for the enforcement of obligations under WTO Agreements, for dispute‑settlement
purposes or to impose new policy commitments on Members.
5.
I think it is
important to emphasise that these same fundamental principles apply to the
periodic trade monitoring Reports by the Director‑General - such as the Annual
Report presented today. The trade monitoring exercise is, above all, a
transparency exercise. It is intended to be purely factual and has no legal
effect on the rights and obligations of WTO Members.
6.
As you know, the
preparation of these Reports relies on Members' timely and specific inputs to
the trade monitoring exercise as well as on their notifications under the
various WTO Agreements.
7.
For the current
Report, 81 Members or 49% of the membership provided input, representing
around 91% of world trade. This is, unfortunately, down from 60% of the
membership for last year's Report.
8.
As I mentioned in
July, to produce high quality, accurate and reliable Reports, it is essential
that all Members and Observers participate to this exercise, engaging with the
Secretariat during the request of information and verification process. Currently,
some regions remain underrepresented in the coverage of the Report, and this is
of concern. As you know, this and other issues are currently being discussed by
Members in the context of the 7th Appraisal of the TPRM, with a
view to further enhance our work.
9.
Now let me move
briefly to the substance of this year's Report. The Report covers the wide
ramifications of the many challenges the global economy is facing, including
the war in Ukraine, climate change events, the food and energy security crises,
and the consequences posed by the COVID‑19 pandemic. In addition, the Report
covers a wide cross‑section of work going on in bodies across the WTO system.
10.
I do not wish to
go into detail about the substantive findings of the Director‑General's Report.
It speaks for itself, and I will shortly invite Director‑General, Dr Ngozi
Okonjo‑Iweala, to share her views.
11.
On an overall
note, the findings of the Report remind us of the fundamental challenges the
global economy is facing today, the impact these are having on global trade and
the role we, the WTO Members, can have in reverting the trend of slowing
international trade.
12.
Equally
important, from a transparency perspective, the Report allows us to take stock
of the most recent trends and developments in trade and trade-policy making and
hopefully this is helpful to the membership.
13.
Now, let me give
the floor to the DG to introduce this Report. Subsequently, I will open the
floor for comments from delegations.