For all its current troubles, WTO may still emerge as the lynchpin of global trade governance | The Indian Express

For all its current troubles, WTO may still emerge as the lynchpin of global trade governance | The Indian Express

Written by Rajat Kathuria |Updated: August 20, 2019 7:54:57 am

The writer is director & chief executive, ICRIER. Views are personal.

For all its current troubles, WTO may still emerge as the lynchpin of global trade governance

A question uppermost on trade economists’ minds is whether the WTO is worth saving. One way to evaluate the question is to investigate its achievements, with the obvious caveat that the past is an imperfect guide to the future.

President Donald Trump has reiterated his long-standing belief that India and China have benefited immensely by misusing the developing country tag

Another salvo from Washington, on our Independence Day, strips us (and China) of the “developing nations” status. At any other moment, both India and China would have been pleased to rid themselves of this tag, but not at this time. For, there is a catch. President Donald Trump has reiterated his long-standing belief that India and China have benefited immensely by misusing the developing country tag, thereby profiting unduly from privileges conferred on such countries. He blamed the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for this lapse, and reiterated his threat to leave the world’s largest multilateral trade forum.