Trade Policy Review

In the first day of Canada’s trade policy review at the World Trade Organization, the U.S. touted the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and lauded a positive bilateral relationship, but criticized Ottawa for its supply management system, a longstanding U.S. concern. “The United States encourages Canada to review its agricultural policies that impose excessive tariffs and restrict imports of supply-managed dairy, poultry, and egg products,” U.S. Ambassador to the WTO Dennis Shea said, according to a copy of his remarks . “Reducing...

China on Wednesday defended its intellectual property practices at the World Trade Organization, saying they were not a “major problem” for foreign businesses, but the U.S. said Beijing’s “mercantilist” policies demanded a “reckoning” to ensure the WTO remained relevant. The exchange in Geneva took place in the context of the WTO’s biennial review of China’s trade policies. The review came hours after the Trump administration announced it would impose tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods this fall, on...

Countries are using trade remedies slightly more than in previous years while fewer trade restrictive measures are being implemented, according to an annual report on the international trading environment published by the World Trade Organization on Monday. “So the picture is encouraging, but of course it could be much better,” WTO Director General Roberto Azevêdo said in remarks made at the Trade Policy Review Body on Monday. “And further progress will require continued commitment. I urge members to redouble efforts...

World Trade Organization members this week voted during a General Council meeting to cut back the frequency of trade policy reviews. The current review cycle, as outlined in Annex 3 to the WTO Agreement, says members must undergo a trade policy review every two, four or six years depending on the size of their economy. The amendment to what is known as the Trade Policy Review Mechanism changes that frequency to every three, five or seven years, with the largest...

Despite this week's announcement of a political agreement on a trade deal between Tokyo and Brussels, Japan used the European Union's biennial trade policy review at the World Trade Organization to urge its future FTA partner to develop its position on cross-border data flows. The U.S. has urged the EU to develop its position in the context of the Trade in Services Agreement negotiations, going as far as to offer language it hoped would reconcile the EU's concerns over personal...

The European Union took the occasion of its biennial trade policy review -- where World Trade Organization members have an opportunity to critique EU policies -- to criticize other members for hindering the body's negotiating arm and for an uptick in trade restrictive measures that run counter to the WTO's primary function. According to the EU, it saw a 10 percent increase in “recorded trade and investment barriers” in 2016 that impacted 1.6 percent of the EU's exports. It also...

The United States has criticized Mexico for lax enforcement of intellectual property rights -- namely on the movement of counterfeit and pirated copyright goods across the U.S.-Mexico border -- as part of the World Trade Organization's regular review of Mexican trade policies this week. IP rights have been an early focus of the Trump administration, with the President Trump signing an Executive Order last week instructing the the secretary of homeland security to implement a plan to curtail the flow...

The United States this week criticized Japan for offering insufficient access to agricultural, automobile, and government procurement markets. During the World Trade Organization’s biennial review of Japan’s trade policies, the U.S. also highlighted its desire to strengthen its economic relationship with Tokyo by pointing to a meeting between President Trump and Prime Minister Abe in February, where the two leaders “reaffirmed their intent to continue cooperation in regional and global fora.” Non-tariff barriers are limiting U.S. auto exports to Japan,...