RULES AND AGREEMENTS IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• Multilateral trade agreements


  Agreements between many nations at one time
• Main benefit of multilateral agreements

  • All nations get treated equally, leveling the playing field especially for poorer nations that are less competitive by nature
• Examples of multilateral trade agreements

  • GATT-WTO, The Doha round of trade agreements
• APEC


  Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, an informal Ministerial-level dialogue group established in 1989 with 12 members, now has 21 members
• APEC


  • Has no treaty obligations required of its participants, decisions are reached by consensus and commitments are undertaken on a voluntary basis
  • Uses the term "Member Economies" rather than "member countries" to refer to its members
• APEC Annual Economic Leaders' Meeting


  Attended by the heads of government except Taiwan, where the policy agenda is set for APEC
• In the 1996 APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, APEC leaders recognized the importance of information technology and called for the conclusion of an information technology agreement by the WTO Ministerial Conference eliminating tariffs on IT products by year 2000
• EO 185 (s. of 2015) was issued to implement the Philippines' tariff commitment on certain products included in the environmental goods list under the APEC
• APEC Action Plans


  • Individual Action Plans
  • Collective Action Plans
• Individual Action Plans


  Record of actions taken by each member economy to meet its stated goals for free and open trade and investment, undertaken on a voluntary and non-binding basis
• Collective Action Plans


  Detail the collective actions of all APEC members in the issue areas outlined in the Individual Action Plans
• APEC's Three Pillars (Scope of Work)

  • Trade and Investment Liberalization
  • Business Facilitation
  • Economic and Technical Cooperation
• GATT


  General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, set up in 1947 as a Negotiating Forum on the reduction of trade barriers, a Multilateral Treaty which provides rules for international trade and an international "COURT" for the settlement of trade disputes
• GATT consisted of 8 rounds (series of negotiations) starting at the Geneva Round of 1947 up to the Uruguay Round (1986 - 1994)
• The Final Act concluding the Uruguay Round and officially establishing the WTO regime was signed on 15 April 1994, during the ministerial meeting at Marrakesh, Morocco
• WTO


  World Trade Organization, created during the GATT Uruguay Round and entered into force on 01 January 1995, an institutional body overseeing the rules of international trade and serving as a negotiating forum and trade dispute settlement body
• The WTO comprises of 164 members since 29 July 2016 representing more than 98% of the world's population, headed by Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria
• The Philippines is a WTO member since 01 January 1995
• WTO Structure


  • Ministerial Conference
  • General Council
• Ministerial Conference


  The topmost decision-making body of the WTO, usually meets every two years and can take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements
• General Council


  Meets regularly to carry out the functions of the WTO and has the authority to act on behalf of the Ministerial Conference, also acts as the Dispute Settlement Body and the Trade Policy Review Body
• WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation

  The first multilateral trade agreement concluded since the WTO was established more than 20 years ago, establishes a series of measures for expeditiously moving goods across borders and is expected to reduce total trade costs by more than 14% for low-income countries
• The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) entered into force on 22 February 2017 after two-thirds of the WTO membership completed their domestic ratification process
• Uruguay Round


  The 8th round of multilateral trade negotiations under the GATT, transformed the GATT into the WTO
• Under the Uruguay Round's "Agreement on Agriculture", it provided for the conversion of Quantitative Restrictions (QRs) to tariffs - "TARIFFICATION", and for a periodic reduction of tariffs. RA 8178 is the Philippines' "Agricultural Tariffication Act"
• Minimum Access Volume (MAV)


  The amount of imports of an agricultural product allowed to be imported into the country at a customs duty lower than the out-quota customs duty, overseen by the MAV Management Committee of the Department of Agriculture
• WTO Agreement on Agriculture


  Entered into force with the establishment of the WTO, embodies the multilateral trading rules governing agriculture and aims to establish a fair and market-oriented agricultural trading system
• The WTO Agreement on Agriculture covers not only basic agricultural products but also products derived from them, as well as all processed agricultural products, but does not include fish and fish products, nor forestry products
• Doha Round


  Also known as "The Doha Development Agenda", is the latest trade-negotiation Round of the WTO, officially launched at the WTO's 4th Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar, in November 2001, with the aim to achieve major reform of the international trading system through the introduction of lower trade barriers and revised trade rules
• A fundamental objective of the Doha Round is to improve the trading prospects of developing countries
• NAMA Negotiations


  Focuses on the reduction or elimination in tariffs, particularly on exportable goods of interest to developing countries, targets the removal of Non-Tariff Barriers, and for developing countries, the most important contribution is the tariff bindings
• Tariff Binding


  A ceiling level tariff or maximum tariff that may be applied by a member
• Non-Tariff Barriers


  Any measure other than a tariff which protects domestic industry, such as quotas, import licensing requirements, and anti-dumping/countervailing measures
• Information Technology Agreement (ITA)

  A WTO agreement to eliminate tariffs on information technology products by the year 2000, initiated by the QUAD countries and concluded at the Singapore Ministerial Conference in 1996
• The Philippines formally signed the ITA on 01 April 1997, and has issued various executive orders to implement its commitments
• BIMP-EAGA


  Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area, a sub-regional economic cooperation initiative in Southeast Asia to accelerate economic development in the four countries through increased trade, tourism and investments
• BIMP-EAGA Coverage


  • Brunei Darussalam
  • Indonesia: Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, Irian Jaya
  • Malaysia: Labuan, Sabah, Sarawak
  • Philippines: Mindanao, Palawan
• BIMP-EAGA Organizational & Institutional Structures


  • BIMP-EAGA Summit
  • Senior Officials Meeting and Ministers Meeting
  • Clusters and Working Groups
  • National Secretariats
  • BIMP-EAGA Facilitation Center
  • BIMP-EAGA Business Council
• BIMP-EAGA Vision 2025


  Provides a way forward for members to continue narrowing development gaps, for sustainably managing natural resources, and for promoting stronger connectivity, focusing on developing a competitive and "green" manufacturing sector, creating sustainable, competitive and climate-resilient agriculture and fishing industry, and adopting a multi-country approach to tourism
• UNCTAD


  United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, a permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964 with the goal to maximize the trade, investment and development opportunities of developing countries and assist them in their efforts to integrate into the world economy on an equitable basis