World Trade Report 2004

The World Trade Report (WTR) is the second annual publication in the WTO Secretariat. It seeks to deepen public understanding of current trade policy issues and to contribute to more informed consideration of the options facing governments. The main topic of the Report this year is coherence. While trade policy can have a positive impact on a country’s growth and development prospects, the Report stresses the importance of ensuring coherence in policy formulation, pointing out that inconsistencies in policy stances or neglect in particular areas can diminish valuable trading opportunities.

The first part of the WTR an overview of recent trade and trade policy developments. It also contains three essays on non-reciprocal preferences and the multilateral trading system, the liberalisation of services trade through the temporary movement of labour, and geographical indications. Each of these issues is directly or indirectly implicated in the Doha negotiations. They are subjects in respect of which many Members hold strong views. The essays seek to shed light on the underlying policy issues, the policy challenges, and the threats and opportunities embedded in each subject area.

The second part of the report demonstrates the need for coherence with reference to several key issues, including macroeconomic policy, the quality and cost of infrastructure services, policies affecting domestic market structures, and the integrity of institutions. The Report also examines the role of international cooperation in securing policy coherence. Effective cooperation in the economic field helps to secure greater gains from trade, manage policies better in areas where the actions of a government in one country have a significant impact on other countries, and facilitate resource transfers. But, the report argues, effective cooperation has to be built on common interests.