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Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Jul23/18) Geneva, 26 Jul (D. Ravi Kanth) — China on 25 July called for maintaining “the stability of global industrial and supply chains” at the World Trade Organization to ensure “an open, non-discriminatory and predictable Multilateral Trading System,” in the face of allegedly security-driven and “isolationist” supply chains being pursued by the United States, said people familiar with the development. On the concluding day of the two-day WTO’s General Council meeting on 25 July, China called on WTO members to adopt ” a responsible attitude” for strengthening cooperation and restoring the stable operation of global industrial and supply chains as soon as possible, and promoting steady recovery of the world economy. China called for adopting a joint Ministerial Statement on ensuring the stability of global supply chains at the WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13), to be held in Abu Dhabi from 26 to 29 February 2024. Introducing China’s proposal, titled “Strengthening the Resilience and Stability of Global Industrial and Supply Chains,” its trade envoy, Ambassador Li Chenggang, said “the global industrial and supply chains have been severely impacted in recent years,” causing difficulties for many countries in their economic growth and trade development. Ambassador Chenggang said “developing members, especially the least developed country members are the most severely inflicted due to financial, technological and information constraints, and MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) bore the hardest hit.” “What’s even worse, we have no sign of a positive reverse to that trend,” China’s trade envoy said, adding that “the business sectors have even depicted supply chain disruptions with wordings like “perpetual storm”, “new reality” and so on and so forth.” Arguing that “the disruptions on industrial and supply chains have aroused widespread concern among WTO Members,” China said “the Ministerial Declaration on the WTO Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic and Preparedness for Future Pandemics adopted at MC12, has repeatedly called upon trade measures not to create unnecessary disruptions on supply chains.” According to China’s trade envoy, “Leaders and Ministers have consistently stated the merit of strengthening supply chain resilience and avoiding trade disruptions at G20, APEC, BRICS and other international fora.” Therefore, “maintaining the stability of the global industrial and supply chains, has become an urgent concern for the vast majority of WTO members.” China expressed hope that “Only by working together through multilateral cooperation can we restore the stability of global industrial and supply chains and better promote post-pandemic economic recovery and social development.” It pointed out that, “Our collective effort would also contribute to the objectives enshrined in the preamble of the Marrakesh Agreement, which includes: “expanding the production of and trade in goods and services” and “allowing for the optimal use of the world’s resources”.” China urged WTO members “to issue a joint statement at MC13 to send a political signal to the outside world that the WTO firmly supports the resilient and stable running of the global industrial and supply chains and advocates cooperation in 12 potential action areas.” According to China, these areas include: 1. Endeavor to promote openness and inclusiveness, firmly uphold the multilateral trading system, abide by WTO rules, strengthen the resilience and stability of global industrial and supply chains, and promote global division of labour and cooperation. 2. Promote trade liberalization and facilitation, oppose protectionism and unilateralism, reduce unnecessary trade barriers, and jointly foster a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent and predictable market environment. 3. Make efforts to remove trade restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic and avoid disruptions to global industrial and supply chains. Implement the MC12 Ministerial Decision on TRIPS, decide as soon as possible on its extension to cover COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics, and enhance the capacity of developing country Members to participate in the industrial and supply chains of vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics, and other products. 4. Implement the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). Strengthen exchanges and cooperation in areas such as simplifying and streamlining customs procedures, improving international logistics efficiency, and enhancing connectivity. Encourage more collaboration among international logistics companies to ensure smooth transportation in supply chains. Fully leverage the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility (TFAF) to provide technical assistance and enhance capacity building to developing country Members. 5. Strengthen exchanges and cooperation on trade in services to address barriers to trade in services. Facilitate cooperation activities among government authorities, industry associations, businesses and the academia on areas such as business opportunity matchmaking, capacity building, trade in services statistics, trade in services standards, and professional service and related business services. 6. Make efforts to deepen cooperation in technological innovation and cooperation, focus on trends in technological development, and encourage enterprises of different Members to cooperate in joint technological research and development in various segments of industrial and supply chains, to jointly promote technological progress and industrial development. 7. Encourage green ways of life and work, promote the application of green technology, green manufacture, and green products in various fields and segments, jointly build green and low carbon industrial and supply chains, and avoid protectionism in the name of the environment, to address climate change, environmental pollution, resource shortage, and other common global challenges facing humanity. 8. Explore the opportunities brought by the digital economy and digital technologies, tap into the important role of new generation information technologies in promoting industrial upgrading and economic recovery, advance innovation and application of new technologies, strengthen cooperation in industrial ecosystems, work to accelerate the development of digital, networked and intelligent industries, and facilitate the transformation of production modes. Deepen exchanges and cooperation in e-commerce, promote the wide application and development of e-commerce around the world, and accelerate the formulation of international rules for e-commerce. 9. Encourage key industries such as integrated circuits, new energy, and biomedicine to make better use of global resources, support businesses in cooperation with their upstream and downstream partners along their industrial chains, and jointly ensure sustainable supply in key sectors. 10. Take into full consideration the challenges faced by developing country Members, especially the LDC Members, as well as MSMEs, and encourage other Members to provide capacity building and technical assistance to help them increase added value and integrate into global and regional industrial and supply chains. 11. Encourage Members to share best practices and case studies on improving the resilience of industrial and supply chains with measures in compliance with WTO rules to increase crisis responsiveness at the Council for Trade in Goods and other relevant WTO regular meetings. 12. Encourage the WTO Secretariat to conduct comprehensive studies on industrial and supply chains, to enhance dialogues with relevant international organizations, the private sector and the academia, and to put forward policy recommendations on the basis of such dialogues to promote the stability and development of global industrial and supply chains. It remains to be seen whether the US will support China’s proposal at MC13. +
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