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3
Negotiating agenda: two dimensions
Liberalization
Improvement of specific commitments
(MA and NT)
Bilateral / Plurilateral
Rule-Making
- Domestic Regulation
- Safeguards
- Gov’t Procurement
- Subsidies
Multilateral
4
Starting point
Actual regimes tend to be far more liberal in many countries than the existing commitments
Widening gap between UR schedules and recent economic and sector reforms market access now negotiated under
some FTAs
6
Baseline: Current pattern of commitments
WTO Members
Average number of commitments per
Member
Range (Lowest/highest number of
sectors per schedule)
Least-developed countries 24 1 – 111
Developing countries 41 1 – 123
Developed countries 105 86 – 115
Accessions since 1995a 102 37 – 147
ALL MEMBERS (147) 50 1 -147
a Transition economies (11) and developing countries (9). They are not included in other groups. Total number of sectors: ~160
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Baseline:Sector pattern of commitments(Number of Members, March 2005)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
DevelopedDeveloping
8
Baseline:Closing the gap?
Actual regimes now more liberal in many countries than the existing commitments
Widening gap between UR schedules and schedules of recently acceded countries access conditions negotiated under PTAs(?)
Mandate: “achieving a progressively higher
level of liberalization” (Article XIX:1)
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Milestones thus far ...
Official starting date Jan 2000 (Art XIX) Initial offers March 2003
Revised offers May 2005 05 Plurilateral requests February 2006Plurilateral requests February 2006 Next meeting November 2007 Next meeting November 2007 A new deadline for revised offers?A new deadline for revised offers?
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INITIAL OFFERS: 72 Schedules (covering 96 Members*)
REVISED OFFERS: 30 Schedules (covering 54 Members*)
*Counting EC Members (EC 25) individually
Submission of Offers: State of play
11
Offers: Sector by sector
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
% S
ch
ed
ule
s
Commitments for First Time in Sector
Existing Commitments: Improved
Existing Commitments: Unaffected
12
Offers: More sectors
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
% S
ched
ules
Commitments for First Time in Sector
Existing Commitments: Improved
Existing Commitments: Unaffected
13
Sub-Sectors Committed: Before and After Offers (all Members)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
All Developed Developing
Members
% o
f to
tal
sub
-sec
tors
co
mm
itte
d (
aver
age)
With Offers
Existing Commitments
14
• Modest achievements (number of sectors and substance)
• Uneven participation by developing economies
• Little change in MFN Exemptions
• Little progress in rules negotiations
Offers to date
16
LDCs not expected to undertake new commitments
Implementation of LDC Modalities Timelines (28 Feb / 31 July / 31 Oct) Plurilateral request-offer negotiations Negotiating objectives (Modes/MFN
exemptions/scheduling principles)
but ...
Hong Kong Declaration (WT/MIN(05)/DEC)
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No commercial presence requirements (Mode 1)
Commitments at existing levels of access (Modes 1 & 2)
Removal or substantial reduction of ENTs
(Modes 2 & 3)
Higher foreign equity levels, more types of legal entity(Mode 3)
Negotiating Objectives Modes 1 - 3
18
- Commitments on:
Contractual service suppliers & independent professionals, delinked from commercial presence
Intracorporate Transferees & Business Visitors
- Removal or substantial reduction of ENTs
- Indication of duration of stay and possibility of renewal
Negotiating Objectives Mode 4
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Laid out sector-by sector Reflect a compendium of articulated
negotiating objectives... not those of a consensus, or of any particular Member
Negotiating Objectives Sectoral Goals
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Removal or substantial reduction of exemptions
Clarification of remaining exemptions in terms of scope and duration
Negotiating Objectives MFN Exemptions
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Clarity, certainty, comparability & coherence (‘4Cs’) of commitments in line with Scheduling Guidelines
Clarification of any remaining ENTs in concordance with Scheduling Guidelines
Negotiating ObjectivesScheduling of Commitments
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Reasons for hope?
Experience with previous trade rounds Too much at stake No credible alternative to WTO – despite
negotiation of FTAs Domestic liberalization moving ahead Vocal pro-liberalization constituencies in
many countries
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... and a sense of realism ?
“You can’t always get what you wantBut if you try
Sometimes you might find You can get what you need ...”
(The Rolling Stones)
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