OVERVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS
IN THE INTERNATIONAL TRADING ENVIRONMENT
Annual
Report by the DIRECTOR-GENERAL[1]
(Mid-October 2015 to mid-October 2016)
Corrigendum
Key
findings, second paragraph, should read as follows:
·
The latest
reporting period shows a fall in the number of new trade‑restrictive measures
introduced at just over 15 per month – a total of 182 for the reporting period.
While this represents a reduction in the monthly figure compared to the recent
peak in 2015, it is actually a return to the trend level for new trade
restrictions since 2009.
Box
3.1 should read as follows:
Box 3.1 Trade coverage of the ITA Expansion Agreement
The review period
covered by this report saw the first instances of implementation of the ITA
Expansion Agreement.
According to very
preliminary Secretariat estimates the trade coverage of the
import-facilitating measures in the context of the ITA Expansion Agreement
and recorded in this report amounted to over US$416 billion or around 2.5% of
the value of total world merchandise imports.a These measures were
implemented by Canada; China; the European Union; Hong Kong, China; Iceland;
Israel; Malaysia; Mauritius; Montenegro; New Zealand; Norway; Chinese Taipei;
Thailand and the United States and are reflected in Annex 1.
Given the very significant trade coverage
value of these measures, they have not been included in the figures
evaluating the trade coverage of the trade facilitating measures in Section
3.1 as it would distort the value of any comparison with previous reports.
For more details on the ITA Expansion Agreement see Section 3.9.
|
a Calculated at HS six-digit level
and using 2015 import figures. Singapore is not included in this figure as its
tariffs on these products are already zero.
Source: WTO Secretariat.
Table 3.10 should read as
follows:
Table 3.10 Initiations of
safeguard investigations
(number of new investigations)
|
Reporting
Member
|
July 2013- June 2014
|
July 2014-June 2015
|
July 2015-June 2016
|
|
Chile
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
|
Colombia
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
|
Costa Rica
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Ecuador
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Egypt
|
0
|
3
|
1
|
|
India
|
6
|
1
|
3
|
|
Indonesia
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
|
Jordan
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Kyrgyz Rep.
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Malaysia
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
|
Morocco
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
|
Philippines
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
|
Saudi Arabia,
Kingdom of
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
|
South Africa
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
|
Chinese Taipei
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Thailand
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
|
Tunisia
|
0
|
2
|
1
|
|
Turkey
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
|
Ukraine
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
|
Viet Nam
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
|
Zambia
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
|
Total
|
21
|
13
|
20
|
Source: WTO Secretariat.
Paragraph 3.181, the last sentence has been deleted and the paragraph should
now read as follows:
Dispute Settlement
3.181 While
the high level of dispute settlement activity shows that the Membership has
great confidence in the system, it has resulted in a number of panels not being
able to proceed immediately after composition as not enough lawyers were
immediately available to staff them. An increase in the number of staff in the
Rules and Legal Affairs Divisions, as well as collaboration between the two
divisions, made it possible to assign lawyers, by April 2016, to assist all of
the panels that were awaiting staff as of October 2015 in accordance with the
Director-General's announcement to WTO Members. Nevertheless, the continuing
establishment and composition of panels over the past year has led to new
delays with panels not always in a position to proceed with their work
immediately after composition. As of the end of the review period, there were
28 ongoing panel and compliance panel proceedings and three panels at the
composition stage. Based on the number of cases currently at the panel stage,
it is expected that the workload of the Appellate Body will increase further and
will remain very high in coming years. The panel report in the compliance
proceedings in the EC and Certain Member
States – Large Civil Aircraft dispute was circulated to WTO Members
on 22 September 2016 and appealed in October. Further large appeals are expected
in 2017, including an appeal in United
States – Measures Affecting Trade in Large Civil Aircraft (Second Complaint)
(Article 21.5), in which the panel report is expected to be
circulated in early 2017.
Paragraph 5.5, footnote 111,
and the source for Table 5.1 should refer to the World Trade Statistical Review, 2016.
Page 113, paragraph 6.43
should refer to Chart 6.6 and not Chart 6.3
ANNEX 1
The
following confirmed measure should be included after measures of the European
Union and before that of Iceland:
|
Hong
Kong, China
|
|
Elimination
of import tariffs under the Expansion of the Information Technology Agreement
(ITA) (352 tariff lines at 8 digit level in HS Chapters 32; 35; 37; 39; 49; 84;
85; 88; 90; 95)
|
WTO
document G/MA/W/117/Add.9, 28 January 2016
|
Effective
1 July 2016
|
__________
[1] This report covers the period mid-October 2015 to mid-October 2016. It is presented pursuant to Paragraph G of
the Trade Policy Review Mechanism mandate and aims to assist the Trade Policy
Review Body to undertake its annual overview of developments in the
international trading environment that are having an impact on the multilateral
trading system. The report is issued
under the sole responsibility of the Director‑General. It has no legal effect on the rights and
obligations of Members, nor does it have any legal implications with respect to
the conformity of any measure noted in the report with any WTO Agreements or
any provisions thereof.