October 9, WTO members initiated the sixth “Fish Week” of the year, marking the shift into the text-based phase of negotiations aimed at establishing regulations on subsidies linked to overcapacity and overfishing. Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Ambassador Einar Gunnarsson of Iceland, who chairs the negotiations, emphasized the intensifying negotiations in anticipation of the WTO’s Senior […]

The International Trade Council, based on notifications from developing and least-developed country members, has identified five specific measures within the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) where implementation assistance is most frequently sought for the upcoming two years. This update was presented by the WTO Secretariat during a meeting of the Committee on Trade Facilitation, which was […]

In its latest trade forecast released on October 5th, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has adjusted its projections for global merchandise trade growth in 2023, reflecting a persistent slowdown that commenced in the fourth quarter of 2022. The revised estimate anticipates a modest growth rate of 0.8% for this year, a considerable reduction from the […]

The latest release of the “Global Trade Outlook and Statistics” by the World Trade Organization (WTO) offers revised projections for global trade in 2023 and 2024. In 2023, the WTO has revised its forecast for the growth of world merchandise trade volume, downgrading it to 0.8%. This is less than half of the 1.7% growth […]

In the ninth meeting of the Working Party on the Accession of the Union of the Comoros to the World Trade Organization (WTO), held on October 5th, WTO members acknowledged the substantial progress achieved by Comoros in finalizing its WTO accession negotiations. The delegation from Comoros reaffirmed its commitment to overcoming remaining obstacles and signing […]

On October 5, the WTO Sub-Committee on Least-Developed Countries (LDCs) delved into the role of preferential rules of origin in expanding trade opportunities for LDCs. The session also featured an experience-sharing segment where representatives from academia and the private sector shed light on the challenges and opportunities LDCs encounter when making use of trade preferences. […]