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Lamy Renews Calls to Resist Protectionism, Conclude Doha Round
On a trip through Asia this week, the head of the World Trade Organization repeated his recent appeals for a swift conclusion to the Doha Round of trade talks, which he called “the best insurance policy against protectionist moves.” WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy also urged countries to coordinate their responses to the global economic crisis and…
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India Moves to Protect Traditional Medicines
The Indian government has effectively licensed 200,000 local treatments as ‘public property’, making the local remedies free for everyone to use, but not to be branded for sale. This initiative follows the startling discovery by scientists in Delhi of the extent of “bio-prospecting” of natural remedies by foreign companies. The UK’s Guardian newspaper reports that an…
- In Brief
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EU May Soon Slap Tariffs on US Biodiesel Imports
The European Union is preparing to impose temporary anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on US biodiesel following repeated complaints from the European Biodiesel Board, which maintains that US subsidies for its domestic biodiesel producers unfairly undercut European competitors in their home market. If the European Commission, the executive body of the EU, decides at its upcoming meeting…
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Obama Looks to Dispel Canadian Fears on Trade
Trade matters were front and centre at last week’s meeting between US President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The Harper government had indicated before the visit that it was ready to express its concerns over Obama’s campaign promises to re-negotiate portions of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, and its unease…
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Rich Nations Have Fallen Short of Aid Goals: OECD
Developed countries are lapsing in their aid commitments to the developing world, according to a new study from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Released earlier this month, OECD’s Development Co-operation Report 2009 found that although donors promised to increase funding by US $50 billion each year by 2010 compared with 2004, they have fallen…
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Tackling Shipping Emissions Requires Greater International Co-operation: Experts
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the shipping industry will require close cooperation between the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), experts agreed at a UN meeting in Geneva last week. Maritime transport is a major conduit for global trade. Despite the current unfavourable economic conditions, projected growth in international…
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Argentina, Brazil Clash on Import Policies
Leaders from Argentina and Brazil meeting in Brasilia last week failed to resolve an ongoing dispute over Argentina’s import policies, measures that Brasilia says discriminate against its manufacturers. The dispute centres on a system of licensing and minimum pricing that Buenos Aires has applied to more than 1,000 imported goods in recent months. In January, Argentina…
- WTO in Brief
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WTO Urges Japan to Bolster Productivity
Japan, having faced a 3.3 percent decline in its gross domestic product in the last quarter of 2008, may confront an unparalleled recession over the next year, a WTO review of the country’s trade policies concluded last week. While the report praised Japan for further liberalising its trade regime over the past two years, it recommended…
- Events
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Events
26-27 February 2009, Geneva, Switzerland. TRADE POLICY AND APPLICATION OF INTERNATIONAL LABOUR STANDARDS. This meeting of experts aims to transform the longstanding debate about the link between liberalised trade and respect for core labour standards in two major ways: first, by starting the discussion bottom-up, at a technical/expert level, based on two specific examples; second,…
- Resources
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Resources
DISTORTIONS TO AGRICULTURAL INCENTIVES. February 2009, World Bank, Kym Anderson. This book provides an overview of the evolution of distortions to agricultural incentives caused by price and trade policies in the 12 largest economies of East and South Asia. Together these countries constitute more than 95 percent of the region’s population, agricultural output, and overall…