Eurochambres recommendations for the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference
European business and welfare depend to a great extent on the ability to maintain open markets, underpinned by free and fair trade and the predictability of global market conditions as enshrined through the multilateral rules based trading system at the WTO.
Over half of European trade is based on WTO rules, and the percentage is even higher as our European FTA’s are building on the WTO framework. Non-discrimination, the gradual opening of markets, the removal of unjustified trade barriers and rules that ensure fair competition are thus essential for European businesses.
The EU must therefore continue to prioritize strengthening the WTO rules, update and re-invigorate them as part of its needed reform agenda, and make them fit for purpose in light of current business practices and challenges. This goes primarily for the digital and green transition, MSMEs inclusion, removal of barriers to healthcare goods, as well as observing existing and stricter future rules against unfair industrial subsidies, state trading, theft of intellectual property, transparency, and more disciplined notification practices, as well as preventing one-sided blockades.
To encourage higher compliance with existing obligations, EUROCHAMBRES has already previously suggested establishing annual public reports that could be elaborated by the WTO secretariat or another independent entity, mirroring the “WB Doing Business Report”, where WTO Members can be annually listed, ranked and tracked regarding their performance in complying with WTO commitments.
As businesses around the world are witnessing a worrying increase in geopolitical frictions and protectionism, we believe that strengthening the WTO and the multilateral trading system is and will always be the best way to meet the challenges of increasingly fragmented world trade.
In this regard, for the upcoming 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi, Eurochambres believes negotiators should build on the successes achieved at MC12 ("Geneva Package") and deliver good results so that the organisation can set a further example of its relevance in addressing global trade challenges through the rule of law, and not leave it to the rule of the strongest.
