We must bring in transformation in WTO to transform world economy: Prabhu
The Dollar Business Bureau India called for bringing transformation in the intergovernmental body World Trade Organisation (WTO) in order to transform the world economy. Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said on Sunday that the WTO was established on some solid principles such as transparency and democracy and even the smallest nation has a say in this organisation of 164 members. “That is something which is a unique characteristic. Therefore, we must bring in transformation in the WTO itself to transform the world economy. To bring that transformation, we have to put constant efforts,” Prabhu said while speaking at the Partnership Summit organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). Prabhu further said that the world trade has benefitted all the countries in terms of generating jobs and encouraging economic activities. “Now the question is whether ...
Special and differential treatment remains a critical aspect of WTO's framework: Prabhu
The Dollar Business Bureau Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said that special and differential treatment remains a critical aspect of the WTO’s framework and this is non-negotiable for India. “While some of the new issues being raised by others may also be of relevance to India, existing issues such as agriculture are critical livelihood issues, which are extremely important for India,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement, while quoting Prabhu, after a two-day brainstorming meeting on WTO in the Post-MC11 (11th Ministerial Conference) Phase was organised by the Department of Commerce and the Centre for WTO Studies on February 19-20. The Commerce Minister stressed on the critical importance of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and drew attention to Prime Minister Narendra ...
India and China submit a joint proposal on Aggregate Measurement of Support in WTO
The Dollar Business Bureau On July 18, 2017, India and China jointly submitted a proposal to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) calling for the elimination - by developed countries - of the most trade-distorting form of farm subsidies, known in WTO parlance as Aggregate Measurement of Support (AMS) or ‘Amber Box’ support as a prerequisite for consideration of other reforms in domestic support negotiations. This is an important proposal by India and China in view of the ongoing negotiations for the upcoming 11th Ministerial Conference of the WTO to be held in Buenos Aires in December 2017. It counters the efforts by some countries to target the subsidies of the developing countries while letting the developed countries retain their huge farm subsidies. The ...
Commerce Ministry to discuss issues related to WTO agenda
The Dollar Business Bureau Senior officials of the Ministry of Commerce will discuss and deliberate upon several major issues with regards to World Trade Organisation (WTO) in New Delhi this week. Indian officials posted at the WTO headquarter in Geneva (Switzerland), including JS Deepak - Permanent Representative of India to WTO, will take part in the deliberations, according to an official. The key issues that would be discussed include the matters related to the upcoming WTO ministerial conference in December in Argentina, subsidies on fisheries and permanent resolution on government’s stock-holding of foodgrains for the purpose of food security. The WTO ministerial conference is the topmost body for decision making. The issue pertaining to food security concerns various developing countries which offer foodgrain at subsidised ...
Indias proposal on services trade gets mixed response at WTO
The Dollar Business Bureau India’s proposal on Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) in Services at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has got mixed response from the member nations, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has informed the Parliament. India had circulated the proposed draft text on the TFA in Services at WTO in February this year. The draft has been discussed at relevant bodies of the WTO, said Sitharaman said in a written response to the Rajya Sabha. The proposal offers an outline for addressing various barriers to trade in services in a holistic and comprehensive manner, she said. “India’s proposal received a mixed response from the WTO members. Some members appreciated India’s proposal as being comprehensive in scope and well balanced,” the Minister said. “However, various developing and developed ...
Strong demand for imports from developing countries is driving a recovery in world trade this year: S&P
The Dollar Business Bureau Imports are likely to drive a recovery in world trade this year. According to S&P Global Ratings’ report released recently, world trade growth is gaining momentum after a prolonged period of weakness. Import growth picked up last year in November and continued to sail on the same strong note into 2017. Early months of 2017 saw global imports rise by 4.1% according to the data published by the Netherlands’ Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. However, the volume of world trade decreased in February by 0.6% while January recorded a 1% increase. World industrial production grew 0.2% month on month and world industrial production momentum was 0.9%. According to an S&P economist “This pickup in global trade is benefiting the ...
Mid-term review of FTP would be completed early to synchronise its roll out with GST, Sitharaman
Press Information Bureau Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that the revised Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) would be released early to synchronise the same with the roll out of GST. The core focus of the revised FTP would be promoting exports from the SMEs and high employment potential sectors. Nirmala Sitharaman was chairing a meeting on the mid-term review of the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 organised jointly by Department of Commerce and Research and Information System for the Developing Countries (RIS) . Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia, Chairman RIS Hardeep Singh Puri and DGFT Ajay Bhalla also participated in discussions. The event was attended by the trade policy experts from the industry, academia, research and Government. Major suggestions discussed during the deliberations ...
Trump to order review of trade agreements, WTO
PTI President Donald Trump was set to sign an executive order issuing directions to review all international trade agreements inked by the US, including the WTO, in a bid to address trade "violations and abuses". The order will not just outline the problem, but will also provide alternative solutions to them. "As far as I can tell there has never been a systematic evaluation of what has been the impact of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements on the country as an integrated whole. So it's trying to find violations and abuses," US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told reporters at a White House news conference. "It calls for a report within 180 days. It calls for not just outlining the problem ...
