News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Sunday, February 28, 2021
Hong Kong contests US ‘China’ label for its goods exports Hong Kong has filed a dispute against a new United States rule that obliges goods exports from Hong Kong to be labelled as coming from ‘China’. Hong Kong, a WTO member, is a separate customs territory and nominally a different …
A selection of new developments at the WTO. EU delays decision on WTO director-general EU member states were supposed to decide today which of the two finalists for the WTO’s top job they would back. But the relevant TPC meeting in Brussels was postponed for another day, to let member …
There is nothing ‘new’ to report from three days of meetings of WTO ambassadors this week under the format of an ‘Informal TNC’ and a ‘General Council’. As usual, the large powers have spent time bickering over ‘market oriented conditions’, ‘special and differential treatment’ for developing countries, dispute settlement, agriculture, …
It’s another busy week in World Trade Organization affairs. Today, a second round of ‘confessionals’ begins. It will lead to the de-selection of three further candidates to the post of director-general. Last week three candidates were de-selected from an original list of eight. Below, a selection of other notable WTO-related …
Geographical considerations trump trade diplomacy experience in choice of shortlist for DG post
Welcome back to our WTO Corner column for regular updates on trade diplomacy in Geneva. Panel gives China a full win in Section 301 tariff case The majority of WTO law experts would have said this case was a no-brainer. The panellists appointed to judge on the matter thought so …
MPIA state of play EU appeals ‘into void’ in Russia anti-dumping dispute To many, the move will seem highly ironic. The EU is not pleased with a July WTO panel ruling regarding anti-dumping duties on ammonium nitrate and steel pipes in a case filed by Russia – so it is …
WTO members try to stick to 2020 deadline for a fisheries deal The year 2020 was set as United Nations deadline to deliver on one of the Sustainable Development Goals on fish stocks. Despite all the difficulties in agreeing anything in the organisation and despite the delay to negotiations induced …
There is loads going on in the WTO this week: the end of the COVID-19 Geneva institution lockdown is on! Some meetings are still held online, though. There was a Trade Negotiation Committee meeting on Monday, there will be a General Council meeting over the next two days with a …
Three candidates from African continent So now it’s official. There are now three candidates from the African continent vying for the WTO’s director-general job. Kenya submitted the candidacy of Amina Mohamed, a high-profile Kenyan politician and a former envoy to the WTO who hosted the last ministerial meeting in Nairobi …
