as

WTO

Global trading
Economic betterment. Higher levels of Employments and Better standards of living Enhance performance, Productivity, and effectiveness of local industry. Economic progress help to counter social evils such as poverty and unemployment.

Evolution of WTO
GATT was signed in 1947with 23 industrialized nations as its founding members Main aim of this body was to reduce tariff and other trade related barriers Continual reduction in tariff helped increasing growth rate during 1950s and 1960s As GATT was provisional the success was limited With globalisation and increase in trade in services required a new effort to reinforce and extend the multilateral trade system. Thus during the Uruguay round WTO was created.

World trade organisation

WTO was founded in April 1994 . It was established to enforce the rules and regulations for international trade in goods and services. Proper dispute settlement mechanism was also introduced. WTO has a three layered structure Ministerial Conference General Council Goods council, services council and Intellectual property council.

1. 2. 3.

Agreements
General agreement on trade in services. (GATS). TRIPS TRIMS Agreement on trade in goods Agreement on agriculture

Agreement on Agriculture

Improving market access by removing trade restrictions. Reducing Domestic support in the form of trade distorting subsidies. Giving export subsidies so that export becomes aritificially competitive.

TRIPS
It is the GATT Uruguay Round Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property.It deals with the protection & enforcement of Trade-Related intellectual property rights. What is Intellectual Property? Intellectual Property comprises 2 distinct forms: * Literary & Artistic Works * Industrial Property

Literary & Artistic Works are books, paintings, musical compositions, plays, operas, movies, radio/tv programs, performances, & other artistic works. How are they Protected? They are protected by Copyright which provides the individual author or artist the exclusive right to do certain things with an original work, including the right to reproduce, publish, perform the work in public, & to make adaptations of it & benefit thereby.

Industrial Property describes physical matter that is the product of an idea or concept or design (other than matter subject to Copyright) that is developed specifically for commercial purposes. Patented objects Layout-designs of IntegratedCircuits Trademarks Industrial Designs Geographical Indications Trade Secrets

Why Protect Intellectual Property?

1) Because companies & individuals expend a lot of investment in time, energy, & money into conceptualization & production of new & innovative products & processes (services) & they have a right, at least for a period of time, to: * have their name associated with their product and/or their authorship associated with it * get paid for their efforts & to recover their investment, & * frustrate the efforts of free riders to make money off their off their efforts & investment whilst not having any input. 2) So authors & inventors have a right to be protected for their efforts.

3) Protection stimulates creativity and innovation necessary for productivity, competitiveness, and national economic development.

WTO TRIMS Agreement

How TRIMs Violate the GATT/WTO Framework: TRIMs are seen as equivalent to historical trade barriers, e.g.,- by forcing foreign firms to use domestic components, they raise the price of these components, with the same effect as tariffs or quantitative restrictions.- if equivalent to quantitative restrictions, they violate of the GATT. TRIMs discriminate between domestic & foreign goods thereby violating (National Treatment) of the GATT.

 they include: Local Content measures Trade Balancing measures.

Local Content measures are measures setting out minimum levels of

locally-made components that must be incorporated in goods or services produced domestically. Trade Balancing measures are measures requiring an investor to use earnings from its exports to pay for imported inputs or other imports. Manufacturing Requirements requires certain products to be produced locally Manufacturing Limitations prevents firms from manufacturing certain products or product lines in the host country

GATS
The creation of the GATS was one of the landmark achievements of the Uruguay Round, whose results entered into force in January 1995. The GATS was inspired by essentially the same objectives as its counterpart in merchandise trade, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT): creating a credible and reliable system of international trade rules; ensuring fair and equitable treatment of all participants (principle of nondiscrimination); stimulating economic activity through guaranteed policy bindings; and promoting trade and development through progressive liberalization.

Applicability of GATS
Financial Services Telecommunication Tourism Health Education Aircraft repair and maintenance services IT services

The GATS distinguishes between four modes of supplying services: cross-border trade, consumption abroad, commercial presence, and presence of natural persons.
Cross-border supply is defined to cover services flows from the territory of one Member into the territory of another Member (e.g. banking or architectural services transmitted via telecommunications or mail) Consumption abroad refers to situations where a service consumer (e.g. tourist or patient) moves into another Member's territory to obtain a service Commercial presence implies that a service supplier of one Member establishes a territorial presence, including through ownership or lease of premises, in another Member's territory to provide a service (e.g. domestic subsidiaries of foreign insurance companies or hotel chains); and

Presence of natural persons consists of persons of one Member entering the territory of another Member to supply a service (e.g. accountants, doctors or teachers). The Annex on Movement of Natural Persons specifies, however, that Members remain free to operate measures regarding citizenship, residence or access to the employment market on a permanent basis.

Most Favoured Nation Clause

MFN clause means that any advantage, Favour , privlege, or immunity granted by a contracting party to any product originating in or destined for any country shall be accorded immediately and unconditionally to a like product originating in or destined for the territories of all other contracting parties. Thus the principle of MFN implies that all nation should be treated as most favoured nation. GATT permits such restrictions only for Safeguarding exchange reserves when a country has BOP difficulties. Restricting imports that would harm domestic price supports and production control programmes of a country. Under developed countries to further their economic development under procedures approved by GATT.

National Treatment
This provision contains an obligation on every member nation to treat foreign service providers and domestic service provider in the same manner i.e. to provide equal competitive position to both service providers.

Dispute Settlement Mechanism

It is the improvement over GATT. DSB looks after dispute settlement mechanism. It has subsidiary bodies for investigations. These are working groups, panels, permanent expert groups, arbitration. Stages of DSM Consultation : Holding consultation between member countries so that it is mutually satisfactory.Any request fopr consultation should be filed to the dispute settlement body. If it is not settled within sixty days the party may request for panel establishment

 Establishment of Panel: Panel is set up by dispute settlement body and the member request the authority in writing. Panel examination: panel consists of 3-5 members and examines complaints and give their findings and recommendations. But it should not exceed more than 6 months and it can be even shortened to 3 months.

 Adoption of panel report: DSB adopts the panel report after 60 days after it is issued and before that any member can give in writing the objection to DSB. Apellate review: Opportunity of appeal to either party in a panel proceeding. Its proceedings cannot exceed 60 days. Implementation: Compliance with recommendation is necessary. Thirty days after the adoption of panel report or the report of appelate body the party concerned must report to DSB about their intentions.