Wto India

India not in favour of facilitator-led process in WTO on agriculture issues

India on Monday expressed reservations over the facilitator-led process in the World Trade Organisation to discuss issues on agriculture, saying that it would potentially undermine ministerial mandates and take negotiations backwards, an official said. The issue came up during a meeting of Heads of Delegation (HoDs) dedicated to agriculture in Geneva at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The official said that India has stressed on the urgency to address mandated matters like public stockholding (PSH), special safeguard mechanism (SSM), and cotton issues in dedicated sessions, separate from broader agriculture negotiations. "India noted that the facilitator-led process would potentially undermine Ministerial mandates and it would take negotiations backwards. It also raised concerns about transparency, neutrality, and inclusive discussion in the facilitator model and warned against creating new pillars, as it would complicate negotiations further," the Geneva-based official said. I

Boosting trade

Lower tariffs will improve export competitiveness

WTO accepts India's request to delay import duty dispute ruling till Oct

The WTO's dispute settlement body has accepted a request from India and Chinese Taipei not to adopt the ruling against New Delhi's import duties on certain information and technology products till October-end, as both sides are engaged in resolving the matter mutually, an official said. The issue came up during a meeting of the dispute settlement body (DSB) in Geneva on July 26. "The DSB agreed to the latest requests from Chinese Taipei and India," the Geneva-based official said. At the July 26 meeting, India and Chinese Taipei once again requested additional time from the DSB to consider the adoption of the panel rulings in the case initiated by Chinese Taipei regarding India's tariffs on certain high-tech goods. The two sides had asked that the DSB further delay consideration of the panel reports until October 28, 2024, to help facilitate the resolution of the disputes. The dispute body had earlier agreed to four previous such requests from India and Chinese Taipei to delay ...

Prioritise deep trade agreements

India's global competitiveness and investment appeal hinge on these agreements

India has option to hit back at EU tariffs with retaliatory custom duties

India has the option to propose the imposition of retaliatory customs duties under the WTO norms on goods imported of a certain value from the EU, as the two sides have failed to reach a consensus on the European Union's safeguard measures on some steel products, an official has said. The EU has extended safeguard duties on certain steel imports, scheduled to expire this month, by another two years till 2026. This is the second extension of the safeguards that take the form of the Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ), first imposed in 2018. India is one of the countries affected by this measure as it has a substantial interest in steel exports to the EU. In 2023-24, India's iron and steel and their products exports to the EU increased to USD 6.64 billion from USD 6.1 billion in 2022-23. India, along with other countries, has earlier raised concerns at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) over the European Union's (EU) move to extend safeguard duty on the import of certain steel products till ...

India seeks arbitration proceedings with Aus under WTO rules on services

India has sought arbitration proceedings under the WTO rules against Australia to resolve an issue with regard to services sector, as it could impact New Delhi's trade in services, an official said. The official said India has already communicated to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) regarding its request for arbitration on the issue. On November 17, 2023, Australia notified to the secretariat of the WTO about its intention to modify its schedule of specific commitments under the GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) to incorporate additional commitments relating to services domestic regulation. GATS is a WTO agreement that came into force in 1995. India is a member of the Geneva-based organisation since 1995. WTO is a global tarde watchdog and adjudicates trade disputes among member nations. As an "affected member", India has stated that Australia's intended modification of its specific commitments does not satisfy certain conditions, the official said. "Thereafter... In

WTO's step towards dispute settlement process reform

Many WTO members have opted to include a mechanism for resolving trade disputes in their bilateral or regional free trade agreements

India, Chinese Taipei ask WTO to delay ruling on ICT import duties dispute

India and Chinese Taipei have asked the WTO's dispute settlement body not to adopt any ruling against New Delhi's import duties on certain information and technology products till July 26 as both sides are engaged in resolving the matter, an official said. The issue came up during a meeting of the dispute settlement body (DSB) in Geneva on April 26. In the meeting, the two countries asked DSB to delay consideration of a dispute panel's reports until July 26, 2024 in order to help facilitate resolution of the disputes, the Geneva-based official said, adding that the body agreed to that. Earlier also, DSB had agreed to three previous requests from India and Chinese Taipei to delay consideration of the reports. As per rules of the WTO, the panel's ruling will have to be adopted by DSB for implementation within 60 days of the release of the order. However, countries can mutually request DSB for delay in adoption of the ruling. In its report, a dispute panel of WTO on April 17, 2023

India, China, Russia, 5 other WTO members slam EU, UK over steel duty

Countries say European bloc's safeguard duty was inconsistent with regulations of the global trade organisation

Spirit of Marrakech can help reform WTO

The WTO dispute settlement mechanism was made dysfunctional by the refusal of the US to appoint judges

Needed an Apple encore

India can do better in electronics exports

Fifth time in a row: India invokes the peace clause for rice in WTO

Prescribed subsidy limit breached for marketing yr 2022-23

RBI, NPCI officials discuss remittance cost analysis with WTO members

Senior officials of the RBI and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have made a presentation to the WTO members on reducing cost of remittances on March 25, an official said. India is pressing for the adoption of open and inter-operable payment systems like UPI, among WTO (World Trade Organisation) members with a view to cut the cost of money transfers or remittances. To cut the cost, India is suggesting to encourage digital transfers, fostering inter-operable systems, promoting competition, streamlining regulations, and enhancing pricing transparency. A proposal in this regard was pushed by India in the 13th ministerial conference, which was held in February in Abu Dhabi. "We had requested to make a presentation on the cost of remittances. The RBI and the NPCI gave presentations online on March 25. The meetings will continue on the subject at Geneva," the official said. The remittance costs are about 6.18 per cent globally which is well above the United Nation's tar

A requiem for the WTO

Despite its benefits to global prosperity, the WTO may be on its last legs, unless something changes dramatically

WTO: India's path diverging from S Africa's, its parting of ways with China

India has often been the fall guy for assiduously safeguarding development issues at the WTO Ministerials, but it has seen a rapid decline in its coalition partners of developing countries

WTO MC13: India blocks EU proposal to link trade with industrial policy

The proposal was a major ask by the EU

National interest trumps global trade

The Abu Dhabi conference highlights any progress for India at the WTO hinges on renewed US engagement in the trade body

Decoded: Differences remain amid some headway at WTO ministerial conference

Issues like subsidies, public stockholding for food security persist

Few gains at WTO

Basic functioning must be repaired

Thailand replaces its Ambassador to WTO following strong protest by India

Thailand has replaced its Ambassador to WTO Pimchanok Vonkorpon Pitfield from here following a strong protest lodged by India on her contentious comment on New Delhi's rice procurement programme, a top government official said on Friday. The official said that Pitfield has been asked to report back to Thailand after the 13th ministerial conference (MC), which has entered the fifth day of talks. She has been learnt to have replaced the Thai foreign secretary. India has expressed strong disappointment over Pitfield's remarks during a consultation meeting on Tuesday accusing New Delhi that India's rice procurement programme at Minimum Support Price (MSP) for the public distribution system is not for people but for capturing the export market, the official said. Following this, India has formally registered its protest with the Thai government and has also expressed displeasure with the WTO chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, agri committee chair Kenya and UAE. "The Thai Ambassador has been ...