Page 2 - Wto

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 ...

India flags high trade deficit in policy review meet of China in WTO

India has flagged its concerns over high trade deficit and non-transparent subsidies of China in a meeting at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Geneva, stating those measures impact domestic industry, an official said. Participating at the WTO's trade policy review meeting of China this week, India hoped that China will support issues concerning the Global South. The Geneva-based trade official said India noted that its bilateral trade with China records the biggest trade deficit. New Delhi has expressed concerns over the size of this deficit, and the non-transparent subsidies and mechanisms of China that leads to low prices, hurting local industry, the official added. India's exports to China in 2023-24 stopped at USD 16.65 billion, while imports aggregated at USD 101.75 billion, leaving a trade deficit of over USD 85 billion. China has emerged as the largest trading partner of India with USD 118.4 billion two-way commerce in 2023-24, slightly edging past the US. In the meetin

Fishing groups demand to keep fisheries' subsidy negotiations out of WTO

Ahead of the General Council meeting in Geneva, small-scale fisher groups from many countries, including India, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, have demanded that the WTO should not negotiate fisheries subsidies as the ongoing talks are 'unfair and unbalanced'. Members of the Geneva-based 166-member World Trade Organisation (WTO) after finalising a deal on curbing harmful subsidies on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, are now discussing ways to curb these support measures that are contributing to overcapacity and overfishing (OCOF). The General Council is the second highest decision-making body of the WTO after the ministerial conference (MC), which meets after every two years. The World Forum of Fisher Peoples and the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fish Workers have raised concerns over the current text and said that exemptions for small-scale fishers across developing countries are being restricted by imposing irrational conditionalities. "We, therefore, demand that ...

Fearing Donald Trump victory, developed countries push WTO deals

But India not keen to join efforts on fisheries and e-commerce JSI

Some WTO nations question India's $48 billion farm input subsidies

Some WTO members, including the US and the UK, have raised questions on India's USD 48 billion farm input subsidies for 2022-23, which according to New Delhi has increased due to inflation and rising costs of fertilisers, an official said. The issue was flagged by these members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) during a meeting of the committee on agriculture on May 23-24. "India explained that the input subsidies are mainly for power, irrigation, and fertilizers and that the increase was due to inflation and rising costs of fertilizers. It insisted that the information had been duly notified to the WTO," the Geneva-based official said. The 166-member WTO is a global trade body. It also adjudicates trade disputes between the member countries. India has notified these numbers to the WTO in April. Under WTO rules of special and differential treatment, developing member countries are allowed to provide these subsidies to low-income or resource-poor farmers. "India's new notificat

Brazil, EU urge India for timely notifications on sugar subsidies at WTO

A group of WTO member countries, including Brazil, Canada and the European Union, have urged India to submit timely notifications on sugar subsidies in the World Trade Organisation, an official said. The issue came up for discussion during the meeting of the WTO's agriculture committee on May 23-24 in Geneva. These countries are also major sugar exporters like India and they allege that support measures by India distort global sugar trade. Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Paraguay, New Zealand, the EU, and Guatemala have "urged India to submit timely notifications on the subsidies", the Geneva-based official said. India has stated that the Indian central and state governments neither paid for nor procured sugarcane from farmers, as all purchases were made by private sugar mills, hence, this information was not included in its notifications of domestic support. The discussion assumes significance as in 2022, India has appealed against a ruling of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) tra

Govt working to help exporters deal with countervailing duty cases

The government is working on a verification system to help exporters deal with countervailing duty cases on domestic products over the RODTEP scheme, an official said. The exercise is important as countervailing or anti-subsidy duties were imposed on certain domestic units by the US and European Union (EU). The products which were investigated by these countries involved reimbursement of levies like electricity duty, VAT on fuel or APMC taxes under the Scheme for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP). The scheme is a WTO (World Trade Organisation) compliant measure. The official explained that the duties have been imposed on certain units only and that too because they could not produce the right documents to the investigation authorities. The commerce ministry is helping Indian exporters to keep proper documentation to deal with these cases. "We will be giving guidance notes from DGTR (directorate general of trade remedies) to units so that whenever an ...

India calls for reinvigorating discussions on development agenda at WTO

India has called for re-energising discussions in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on the development dimension to achieve tangible progress and meaningful outcomes. In a communication to the WTO, the country said that there is a substantial unfinished development agenda emanating from the recently concluded 13th ministerial conference of the WTO in Abu Dhabi. "We seek to strengthen the discussions and debate on the issue of development in the working of all regular bodies of this organisation. We wish that the momentum of development discussions continues in a focused and structured way. "We, therefore, need to commit to reinvigorating discussions on the development dimension for tangible progress and meaningful outcomes for the WTO to be seen as fit for purpose," India said in its communication titled - '30 Years of WTO: How has Development Dimension progressed - A way forward'. According to experts, development agenda refers to issues being pushed by developing and least ...

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

WTO pares down projected merchandise trade volume growth to 2.6% for FY24

India's merchandise exports in value terms are expected to contract by 1-1.5 per cent in 2023-24 after two consecutive years of growth

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

China set to challenge US electric vehicle plans at WTO, says report

China said it was contesting 'discriminatory subsidies' under the US Inflation Reduction Act that it said resulted in the exclusion of goods from China and other WTO countries

India-US successfully resolve all seven pending WTO disputes bilaterally

The resolution of all the disputes is not only a sign of strengthening economic ties between both nations, but also showcases India's new approach to trade issues

India-US successfully resolve all seven pending WTO disputes bilaterally

The resolution of all the disputes is not only a sign of strengthening economic ties between both nations, but also showcases India's new approach to trade issues

SJM hails India for blocking China-led investment facilitation pact at WTO

The Swadeshi Jagran Manch on Monday hailed India's success in blocking a China-led investment facilitation pact in the recently concluded WTO ministerial meeting in Abu Dhabi and said it was a "very significant" move for global peace. Addressing a meeting organised here to discuss the outcomes of the WTO ministerial meet which concluded on March 1, Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan said China, joined by more than 120 countries, had tried to push the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement (IFDA) as a plurilateral agreement at the meet. "China's proposal was presented as if it was going to bring a big revolution in the world. But, its entire efforts to push the addition of IFDA at the 13th WTO ministerial meet collapsed like a pack of cards after India and South Africa took a firm stand against it," Mahajan said. "It was a very significant step for world peace and India should be seen as a saviour for the way it was blocked," he added. Mahajan said th

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 ...

It's 'sad' some countries still obstructing outcomes at WTO: Piyush Goyal

The WTO ministerial meeting in Abu Dhabi this week is seeking deals on ending fishing subsidies and extending a moratorium on digital trade tariffs - a move that India and South Africa oppose

WTO MC13: India for review of Customs duty pause on digital goods

India demands end to customs duties moratorium on e-commerce, says it impacts developing countries

India pushes for restoration of WTO appellate body as 'top-most priority'

India also called for effective formalisation of the ongoing informal dispute settlement reform discussions among some member nations at the WTO, at the 13th ministerial conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi