Estructuras Economicas

ESASCD 2006/2007
Master in Cooperation and International Economic Integration

-Trade

Negotiations Module-

I. Multilateral Trade Negotiations
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1. GATT/ WTO: Principles, Structure, Economics
GATT/ WTO: Principles Structure Economics
2. The Doha Round: what place for Development?

II. Regional Trade Negotiations
Regional Trade Negotiations
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3. Multilateralism vsregionalism? Trends and key features
4. The EPA negotiations between EU and ACP countries

III. Trade Negotiations and Development
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5. Aid for Trade ?

ESASCD 2006/2007
Master in Cooperation and International Economic
Integration

Trade Negotiations Module
Multilateral Trade Negotiations

GATT/ WTO: Principles, Structure, Economics

-Francesco RampaProgramme Officer
Economic andTrade Cooperation
and Trade Cooperation

Outline

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I. A picture
picture
II. Principles
III. Negotiations
IV. Structure
V. Economics
Economics

The World Trade Regime: a picture
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Institutional set-up
From 1948 until 1995, no international organisation, “provisional”
GATT Secretariat, practical
1995, World Trade Organization… Increasing number ofmembers…today 150
150
Once upon a time
Planning of post-war period during WWII by US and Great-Britain
with web of multilateral organisation (UN IMF World Bank
with web of multilateral organisation (UN, IMF, World Bank, …)
Idea: free trade will eventually create peace (commercial
liberalism)
Embedded liberalism = free trade + welfare state…among key
liberalism free trade welfare state
keynegotiators: Keynes (UK)
International Trade Organisation
Conference on Trade and Employment in Havana, Cuba in 1947
on Trade and Employment in Havana, Cuba in 1947
Havana Charter: rules on trade employment, commodity
agreements, restrictive business practices, international
investment, and services.
Too ambitious, never brought to vote in US congress

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade(GATT)
• from December 1945 onwards, negotiations to (reduce and) bind
customs tariffs
strict reciprocity
• tariff bindings + General Clauses in Protocol of Provisional
Application of the GATT
• Latin-American countries refused to join, they would have joined
th
the ITO
development !!!
• Quantitative restrictions (QR) for balance-of-payments reasons
restrictions (QR) for balancereasons
until beginning 1960s.
post-war reconstruction
contrary to rule to abolish QR (less transparent then tariffs)
• Exceptions for agriculture
war and post-war experience, fear for shortages
• Exceptions for textiles (since 1961)
• First real amendment for developing countries (1954/55)
(1954/55)
article XVIII: (A) infant industry; (B) BoP; (C) and, economic
development.

World traderegime
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Regime = structure, provides common guidelines for behaviour and shared
expectations
expectations
• Issue-area = trade (in 1947, goods; since 1995, goods + services + TRIPS + TRIMS)
• Purposively established =
-General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1947)
-Treaty establishing the World Trade Organization (1995)
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(1995)
• Regime aim: trade ⇒ wealth ⇒ peace
• Regime –objective:
-1947: gradual liberalisation of trade in goods
-1995: gradual liberalisation of trade in goods and services
Regime norms:
-Market access
• tariffs + non-tariff barriers
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non-tariff barriers = subsidies, dumping, laws and regulation (e.g. product
standards, health and safety standards, environmental standards,..), …
sa
-Predictability: Rule-based system; Trade Policy ReviewMechanism (since 1995);
Dispute Settlement Procedure (since 1947, revised 1995)
-Non-discrimination
-Reciprocity (Trading concessions)
concessions)

‘S
‘Sources’ of WTO principles
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Legal texts (GATT and subsequent)
Dispute settlement reports
Acts of WTO organs
Agreements in WTO context
g
Customary international law
General principles of law
Other agreements...