1. WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION AND RELATED AGREEMENTS
Group Members:
Aveek Bose (08)
D’Costa Rohan (12)
Easakku Shiva (17)
Menon Pramod (35)
Pirwani Laxman (45)
Shah Saurabh (54)
Shetty Suraj (57)
Chhawchharia Kamal (64)

2. Trade without Discrimination Promoting Fair Competition
Introduction
Functions of WTO
Negotiating Forum
Set of Rules
Dispute settlement
Principles of Trading
Trade without Discrimination
Promoting Fair Competition
Encouraging development and economic reform 
Freer Trade
Predictability
Most Favoured Nation
National Treatment

3. History of WTO Established in 1995 GATT is well over 50 years old
GATT trade rounds
Year
Place/name
Subjects covered
Countries
1947
Geneva
Tariffs 23
1949
Annecy 13
1951
Torquay 38
1956 26
Dillon Round
Tariffs and anti-dumping measures 62
Kennedy Round
Tariffs, non-tariff measures, “framework”
102
Tokyo Round
Agreements
Tariffs, non-tariff measures, rules, services, intellectual property, dispute settlement, textiles, agriculture, creation of WTO, etc
123

4. Organization Structure of WTO
150 members
97% world trade
30 other negotiating membership

5. Benefits of WTO The system helps promote peace
Disputes are handled constructively
Rules make life easier for all
Freer trade cuts the costs of living
It provides more choice of products and qualities
Trade raises incomes
Trade stimulates economic growth
The basic principles make life more efficient
Governments are shielded from lobbying
The system encourages good government

6. Overview of WTO Agreements
Often called as WTO trade rules.
Commitments to lower customs tariffs and other trade barriers, and to open and keep open services markets
Six main parts:
The basic structure of the WTO agreements: how the six main areas fit together — the umbrella WTO Agreement, goods, services, intellectual property, disputes and trade policy reviews.
Umbrella
AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING WTO
Goods
Services
Intellectual property
Basic principles
GATT
GATS
TRIPS
Additional details
Other goods agreements and annexes
Services annexes
Market access commitments
Countries’ schedules of commitments
Countries’ schedules of commitments (and MFN exemptions)
Dispute settlement
DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
Transparency
TRADE POLICY REVIEWS

7. Tariff Agreements Tariff Cuts
Developed Countries Tariff cuts in first five years from 1st January 2005
40% cut in Industrial tariff from an average of 6.35 to 3.8%
Value of duty-free imported industrial products developed countries will jump from 20% to 44%.
On 26 March 1997, 40 countries in information technology products agreed to eliminate import duties
More Bindings
Imports restriction converted in tariff – tariffication
First step – to replace these restrictions with tariffs that represented about the same level of protection
Six years from , these tariffs were gradually reduced.
Elimination of previous import bans.

8. Agriculture Agreements
Original GATT contained Loopholes
The Uruguay Round produced the first multilateral agreement
Fair competition and a less distorted sector
New Rules and commitments
Market access
Domestic support
Export subsidies
The least-developed and those depending on food imports

9. Standards and Safety Agreement
Article 20 of GATT - Protect human, animal or plant life or health
The Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Agreement or SPS
Setting of own standards
Article 5.7 – temporary “precautionary” measures.
Technical regulations and standards: The Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement (TBT)
Discourages any methods that would give domestically produced goods an unfair advantage

10. Textiles Agreements One of the hardest-fought issues in the WTO
From 1974 to the end of the Uruguay Round – The Multifibre Arrangement (MFA)
The WTO’s Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC) – 1995
Fully integrated sector by 1st January 2005
End of Quota system
Textiles Monitoring Body (TMB) – Supervisory Body

11. Services Agreements The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
Three elements:
General obligations and disciplines;
Annexes dealing with rules for specific sectors;
Movement of natural persons
Financial services
Telecommunications
Air transport services
Individual countries’ specific commitments
Most-favoured-nation (MFN) treatment   11

12. Intellectual property Agreements
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
Five broad issues:
Basic principles
Protection to intellectual property rights
The Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (patents, industrial designs, etc)
The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (copyright).
Enforcement of Rights
Enforced under member countries’ laws, and penalties for infringement
Fair and equitable procedure
Review of an administrative decision or to appeal a lower court’s ruling
Settlement of Disputes
Special transitional arrangements – 1, 5 or 11 years or more
Willful trademark counterfeiting or copyright piracy – Criminal offence 12

13. Anti-dumping, subsidies, safeguards Agreements
Anti – Dumping actions: Anti-Dumping Agreement.
GATT (Article 6) allows countries to take action against dumping
Margin of dumping is less than 2% of the export price of the product – investigations are to be end immediately.
Subsidies and special “countervailing” duties to offset the subsidies
Prohibited subsidies
Actionable subsidies
Emergency measures to limit imports temporarily, designed to “safeguard” domestic industries 13

14. Non-tariff barriers Agreements
Import licensing
The Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures
Rules for the valuation of goods at customs
Preshipment inspection
The Preshipment Inspection Agreement 
Rules of origin
The Rules of Origin Agreement
Investment measures
The Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs) Agreement  14

15. Plurilaterals Agreements
Trade in civil aircraft
Government procurement
Dairy products
Bovine meat
The bovine meat and dairy agreements were terminated in 1997. 15

16. Trade policy reviews
Governments have to inform about specific measures, policies or laws through regular “notifications”
WTO conducts regular reviews of individual countries’ trade policies — the trade policy reviews
Objectives:
Increase in transparency
Improvement in the quality of public and intergovernmental debate
Enable the multilateral assessment of the effects of policies
The frequency of the reviews depends on the country’s size:
The four biggest traders – once every two years.
The next 16 countries – every four years.
The remaining countries – every six years 16

17. Dispute Settlement 17

18. Dispute Settlement The main stages are: Before the first hearing
Rebuttals: 
Experts
First draft 
Interim report
Review
Final report
The report becomes a ruling
Appeals
Compliance of with WTO ruling and Penalties for Non compliance 18

19. Dispute Settlement Cases
1st CASE: Hormone-Treated Beef Case
Complaints by: U.S. and Canada Complaints against: European Union WTO Cases WT/DS26 (U.S.) and WT/DS48 (Canada)
2nd CASE : Automobile Fuel-Efficiency Case
Complaint by: E.U. Complaint against: U.S. GATT Case DS31 19

20. Dispute Settlement Cases
3RD Case: Baby-Food Trademark Controversy
Raised by: U.S. Directed against: Guatemala Discussed: No formal WTO dispute-settlement procedure was initiated
4th case: Longhorn Beetle Controversy
Complaints by: Hong Kong Complaints against: U.S. & Canada Complaints to WTO Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. Formal WTO dispute-settlement procedure not initiated 20

21. THANK
YOU