WTO MINISTERIAL

India has strictly limited milk and milk product imports under tariff rate quotas (TRQs) in accordance with WTO commitments. Santosh Sarangi, director general of foreign trade, confirmed that no TRQ imports are planned for the current year. TRQ impo...

The 13th Ministerial Conference of WTO in Abu Dhabi renewed commitment to a well-functioning Dispute Settlement Mechanism (DSM) by 2024, crucial for the rules-based multilateral trading system.

India's move to block a China-led investment facilitation pact at the WTO ministerial meeting promotes multilateral agreements. The agreement aimed to create legally binding provisions for investment flows but compromised member countries' sovereign...

A revised text on agriculture circulated in the afternoon offered two options either adopting a permanent solution at the MC13 or members intensify negotiations at the committee of agriculture to arrive at a permanent solution for food security purp...

The 13th ministerial conference of the WTO continues with discussions on key issues including agriculture, fisheries subsidies, and duty moratorium on e-commerce trade. India emphasizes finding solutions for public stockholding of grains and market ...

“Members are indicating that additional time will be needed to iron out some of the outstanding issues,” said an official, adding that, for this reason, the informal meeting of heads of delegation and the formal closing session were postponed to Fri...

The closing session of the World Trade Organisation's high level meeting taking place in Abu Dhabi this week has been postponed to midnight local time, or 2000 GMT, from 1600 GMT originally, according to an emailed statement. "At this session, minis...

Abu Dhabi (UAE): Union Minister Piyush Goyal asserted on Feb 28 that India plays a crucial role as a consensus builder in the World Trade Organisation (WTO). On the third day of the 13th ministerial conference, he said, “India’s stand is consistent,...

Ahead of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, the G-33 group, including India, has urged members to achieve an outcome on public stockholding for food security purposes. The G-33, representing 47 deve...

Tariffs, subsidies and “Buy America” restrictions like those built into the Inflation Reduction Act will raise domestic costs.

The WTO, which launches its 13th ministerial meeting Monday, regulates large swathes of global trade but is handicapped by a rule requiring full consensus and a dispute settlement system crippled by the United States. - Dispute settlement in disarra...

Any moves to draw up new agreements in haste on by stealth would discourage countries to even discuss critical issues at the WTO. India’s stance reflects the fundamental need to understand the impact of evolving themes.

In a signed letter dated February 16, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the conference, scheduled to be held in the capital of the United Arab Emirates from February 26-29, may need to be extended so as to finalise deliverable items.

Farmers agitating in New Delhi will shaped India's stance at the Abu Dhabi WTO ministerial. All members of the WTO agree that the path forward involves decreasing trade-distorting subsidies. However, navigating this route will inevitably involve add...

The four-day meeting of trade ministers of the 164-member global trade rule-making body WTO begins on February 26 at Abu Dhabi, UAE. MC is the highest decision-making body of the WTO. The experts also said that this is a proposal of a group of count...

The EU has proposed that these issues be taken up as part of reforming the multilateral trade watchdog. Many proponents are calling MC13 as a "reform ministerial". The EU has identified three areas of systemic importance - trade policy and state int...

It is a policy tool used by governments to purchase, stockpile and distribute food when needed and hence, crucial for food security. India procures crops like rice and wheat from farmers at minimum support price, and stores and distributes foodgrain...

India aims to secure a permanent solution for public stockholding, reform the WTO, end the moratorium on customs duties for digital transactions, protect the interests of poor fishermen, and propose reforms in the WTO dispute settlement system.

India is engaging with the EU on the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and preparing the domestic industry to comply with the norms. It opposes non-trade issues at the WTO. India insists that measures to combat climate change should not viol...