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History

Bretton Woods System:

John Maynard Keynes and Harry Dexter White at the Bretton Woods Conference – both economists being strong advocates of a liberal international trade environment, recommended the establishment of three institutions:

1.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) for fiscal and monetary issues.

2.The World Bank for financial and structural issues.

3.The International Trade Organization (ITO) for international economic cooperation.

The Bretton Woods Conference had introduced the idea for an organization to regulate trade as part of a larger plan for economic recovery after World War II. As governments negotiated the ITO, 15 negotiating states began parallel negotiations for the GATT as a way to attain early tariff reductions & ensure a stable trade and economic world environment. Once the ITO failed in 1950, only the GATT agreement was left.

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GATT:

The GATT (typically abbreviated GATT), which was then signed in 1947, is a multilateral agreement regulating trade among about 150 countries. According to its preamble, the purpose of the GATT is the “substantial reduction of tariffs and other international trade barriers, the elimination of preferences, reduction of tariff barriers, quantitative restrictions & subsidies on trade thru a series of agreements, on a reciprocal and mutually advantageous basis.” By then, GATT was a treaty, not an organization.

The history of the GATT can be divided into three phases:

1.From 1947 until the Torquay Round, largely concerned which commodities would be covered by the agreement and freezing existing tariff levels.

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2.From 1959 to 1979 encompassing three rounds, focused on reducing tariffs.

3.From 1986 to 1994 consisting only of the Uruguay Round, extended the agreement fully to new areas such as tariff, intellectual property, services, capital, investment measures & agriculture.

The Uruguay Round, which was completed on December 15, 1993 after seven years of negotiations, resulted in an agreement among 117 countries (including the U.S.) to reduce trade barriers and to create more comprehensive and enforceable world trade rules. The agreement coming out of this round, the Final Act Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, was signed in April 1994. The Uruguay Round agreement was approved and implemented by the U.S. Congress in December 1994, and went into effect on January 1, 1995.

WTO:

This agreement also created the World Trade Organization (WTO), which came into being on January 1, 1995. The WTO implements the agreement, provides a forum for negotiating additional reductions of trade barriers & for settling policy disputes, &

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enforces trade rules. Until the establishment of the WTO, GATT functioned de facto as an organization, conducting rounds of talks addressing various trade issues and resolving international trade disputes. Since the end of the Uruguay Round, there have been negotiations on topics such telecommunications services, information technology products, and financial services.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.

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Fact   File

Location: Geneva, Switzerland.

Established: 1st January 1995.

Created by: Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-94).

Budget: 182 million Swiss francs for 2007.

Secretariat staff: 625.

Head: Pascal Lamy (Director-General).

Membership: Countries on map. 151 countries (on 27 July 2007).

New member: Oman.

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Difference between WTO & GATT

For several decades, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was applied on a provisional basis Although it operated like a permanent agreement, it was without a permanent institutional framework, & was serviced by a provisional Secretariat. The WTO now provides a permanent institutional framework for the multilateral trading system. It has its own Secretariat. Like the GATT, the WTO covers trade in goods. However, it also covers trade in services and trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights. Also, the dispute settlement mechanism has been considerably strengthened in the WTO.

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GATT and WTO trade rounds

Name Start Duration Countries

Subjects covered

Achievements

Geneva

April 1947 7 months 23 Tariffs

Signing of GATT, 45,000

tariff concessions affecting $10

billion of trade

Annecy

April 1949

5 months 13 Tariffs Countries exchanged

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some 5,000 tariff

concessions

Torquay

September 1950

8 months 38 Tariffs

Countries exchanged some 8,700

tariff concessions, cutting the 1948 tariff levels by

25%

Geneva II

January 1956 5 months 26

Tariffs,admission of Japan

$2.5 billion in tariff

reductions

DillonSeptember 1960

11 months 26 Tariffs

Tariff concessions worth $4.9 billion of

world trade

Kennedy

May 1964

37 months 62

Tariffs,Anti-

dumping

Tariff concessions worth $40 billion of

world tradeTokyo Septe

mber 1973

74 months

102 Tariffs, non-tariff

measures, "framework

"

Tariff reductions worth more than $300

billion dollars

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agreements achieved

Uruguay

September 1986

87 months

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Tariffs, non-tariff

measures, rules,

services, intellectual property, dispute

settlement, textiles,

agriculture, creation of WTO, etc

The round led to the creation of WTO, and

extended the range of

trade negotiations,

leading to major

reductions in tariffs (about

40%) and agricultural

subsidies, an agreement to

allow full access for textiles &

clothing from developing countries, & an extension of intellectual

property rights.

Doha November

2001

? 141 Tariffs, non-tariff

measures,

The round is not yet

concluded.

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agriculture, labor

standards, environmen

t, competition

, investment, transparency, patents

etc

Formal Structure

According to WTO rules, all WTO members may participate in all councils, committees, etc., except the Appellate Body, Dispute Settlement panels, and plurilateral committees.

Highest level: Ministerial Conference:

The topmost decision-making body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference, which has to meet at least every two years. It brings together all members of the WTO, all of which are countries or separate customs territories. The Ministerial Conference can make decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements.

Second level: General Council:

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The daily work of the ministerial conference is handled by three groups: the General Council, the Dispute Settlement Body, and the Trade Policy Review Body. All three consist of the same membership — representatives of all WTO members — but each meets under different rules.

1. The General Council, the WTO’s highest-level decision-making body in Geneva, meets regularly to carry out the functions of the WTO. It has representatives (usually ambassadors or equivalent) from all member governments and has the authority to act on behalf of the ministerial conference which only meets about every two years. The council acts on behalf on the Ministerial Council on all of the WTO affairs. The current chairman is H.E. Mr. Bruce GOSPER (Australia).

2. The Dispute Settlement Body is made up of all member governments, usually represented by ambassadors or equivalent. The current chairperson is H.E. Mr. Mario MATUS (Chile).

3. The WTO General Council meets as the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB) to undertake trade policy reviews of Members under the TRPM. The TPRB is thus open to all WTO

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Members. The current chairperson is H.E. Mr. Yonov Frederick AGAH (Nigeria).

Third level: Councils for Trade:

The Councils for Trade work under the General Council. There are three councils — Council for Trade in Goods, Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, & Council for Trade in Services — each council works in different fields. Apart from these three councils, six other bodies report to the General Council reporting on issues such as trade & development, environmentalism, regional trading arrangements & administrative issues.

1. Council for Trade in Goods — The workings of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which covers international trade in goods, are the responsibility of the Council for Trade in Goods. It is made up of representatives from all WTO member countries. The current chairperson, as of 2007-02-13, is Amb. Yonov Frederick Agah (Nigeria).

2. Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights — Information on intellectual property in the WTO, news & official records of the activities of the TRIPS Council, & details of the WTO’s work with other international organizations in the field.

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3. Council for Trade in Services — The Council for Trade in Services operates under the guidance of the General Council and is responsible for overseeing the functioning of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). It is open to all WTO members, and can create subsidiary bodies as required.

Fourth level: Subsidiary Bodies:

There are subsidiary bodies under each of the three councils.

1. The Goods Council — subsidiary under the Council for Trade in Goods. It has 11 committees consisting of all member countries, dealing with specific subjects such as agriculture, market access, subsidies, anti-dumping measures & so on. Committees include the following:

Information Technology Agreement (ITA) Committee.

State Trading Enterprises. Textiles Monitoring Body — Consists of a

chairman & 10 members acting under it. Groups dealing with notifications —

process by which governments inform the WTO about new policies &measures in their countries.

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2. The Services Council — subsidiary under the Council for Trade in Services which deals with financial services, domestic regulations & other specific commitments.

3. Dispute Settlement panels & Appellate Body- subsidiary under the Dispute Settlement Body to resolve disputes and the Appellate Body to deal with appeals.

Other committees:

Committees on o Trade & Environment.o Trade & Development (Subcommittee

on Least-Developed Countries).o Regional Trade Agreements.o Balance of Payments Restrictions.o Budget, Finance & Administration.

Working parties on o Accession.

Working groups on o Trade, debt and finance.o Trade & technology transfer.

The WTO operates on a one country, one vote system, but actual votes have never been taken. Decisionmaking is generally by consensus, and relative market size is the primary source of bargaining power. The

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advantage of consensus decision-making is that it encourages efforts to find the most widely acceptable decision. Main disadvantages include large time requirements and many rounds of negotiation to develop a consensus decision, and the tendency for final agreements to use ambiguous language on contentious points that makes future interpretation of treaties difficult.

In reality, WTO negotiations proceed not by consensus of all members, but by a process of informal negotiations between small groups of countries. Such negotiations are often called "Green Room" negotiations (after the colour of the WTO Director-General's Office in Geneva), or "Mini-Ministerials", when they occur in other countries. These processes have been regularly criticized by many of the WTO's developing country members which are often totally excluded from the negotiations.

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Features

The WTO is an international organization designed to supervise & liberalize international trade. There are a number of ways of looking at

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the WTO. It’s a forum for governments to negotiate trade agreements. It’s a place for them to settle trade disputes. It operates a system of trade rules.

The WTO came into being on January 1, 1995, & is the successor to the GATT, which was created in 1947. Born in 1995, but not so young, The WTO began life on 1 January 1995, but its trading system is half a century older. Since 1948, the GATT had provided the rules for the system. The second WTO ministerial meeting, held in Geneva in May 1998, included a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the system.

It is operating since five years as an international organization. The WTO is the most powerful legislative & judicial body in the world. The WTO deals with the rules of trade between nations at a global or near-global level.

It’s a negotiating forum. Essentially, the WTO is a place where member governments go, to try to sort out the trade problems they face with each other. The first step is to talk. The WTO was born out of negotiations, & everything the WTO does is the result of negotiations. The bulk of the WTO's current

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work comes from the 1986-94 negotiations called the Uruguay Round & earlier negotiations under the GATT. The WTO is currently the host to new negotiations, under the “Doha Development Agenda” launched in 2001

It’s a set of rules. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated & signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations. These documents provide the legal ground-rules for international commerce. They are essentially contracts, binding governments to keep their trade policies within agreed limits. Although negotiated & signed by governments, the goal is to help producers of goods & services, exporters, & importers conduct their business, while allowing governments to meet social and environmental objectives.

It helps to settle disputes. This is a third important side to the WTO’s work. Trade relations often involve conflicting interests. Agreements, including those painstakingly negotiated in the WTO system, often need interpreting. The most harmonious way to settle these differences is through some neutral procedure based on an agreed legal foundation. That is the purpose behind the dispute settlement process written into the WTO agreements.

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The WTO is a rules-based, member-driven organization - all decisions are made by the member governments, & the rules are the outcome of negotiations among members.

The WTO is governed by a Ministerial Conference, which meets every two years; a General Council, which implements the conference's policy decisions & is responsible for day-to-day administration; & a director-general, who is appointed by the Ministerial Conference. The WTO's headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland.

Functions

The WTO's stated goal is to improve the welfare of the people of its member countries, specifically by lowering trade barriers & providing a platform for negotiation of trade. Its main mission is "to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably & freely as possible". This main mission is further specified in certain core functions serving & safeguarding five

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fundamental principles, which are the foundation of the multilateral trading system.

Among the various functions of the WTO, these are regarded by analysts as the most important:

It oversees the implementation, administration & operation of the covered WTO trade agreements.

It provides a forum for negotiations & for settling disputes.

Additionally, it is the WTO's duty to review the national trade policies, & to ensure the coherence & transparency of trade policies through surveillance in global economic policy-making. Another priority of the WTO is the assistance & training of developing, least-developed & low-income countries in transition to adjust to WTO rules & disciplines through technical assistance, cooperation and training. The WTO is also a center of economic research & analysis: regular assessments of the global trade picture in its annual publications & research reports on specific topics are produced by the organization. Finally, the WTO cooperates closely with the two other components of the Bretton Woods system, the IMF & the World Bank & other international organizations.

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Principles of the trading system

The WTO establishes a framework for trade policies; it does not define or specify outcomes. That is, it is concerned with setting the rules of the trade policy games. Five principles are of particular importance in understanding both the pre-1994 GATT and the WTO:

1. Non-Discrimination.

It has two major components: the most favored nation (MFN) rule, & the national treatment policy. Both are embedded in the main WTO rules on goods, services, and intellectual property, but their precise scope and nature differ across these areas. The MFN rule requires that a WTO member must apply the same conditions on all trade with other WTO members, i.e. a WTO member has to grant the most favorable conditions under which it allows trade in a certain product type to all other WTO members. Grant someone a special favour & you have to do the same for all other WTO members. National treatment means that imported and locally-produced goods should be treated equally (at least after the foreign goods have

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entered the market) & was introduced to tackle non-tariff barriers to trade (e.g. technical standards, security standards et al. discriminating against imported goods).

2. Reciprocity.

It reflects both a desire to limit the scope of free-riding that may arise because of the MFN rule, & a desire to obtain better access to foreign markets. A related point is that for a nation to negotiate, it is necessary that the gain from doing so be greater than the gain available from unilateral liberalization; reciprocal concessions intend to ensure that such gains will materialize.

3. Binding & enforceable commitments.

The tariff commitments made by WTO members in a multilateral trade negotiation and on accession are enumerated in a schedules (list) of concessions. These schedules establish "ceiling bindings": a country can change its bindings, but only after negotiating with its trading partners, which could mean compensating them for loss of trade. If satisfaction is not obtained, the complaining country may invoke the WTO dispute settlement procedures.

4. Transparency.

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The WTO members are required to publish their trade regulations, to maintain institutions allowing for the review of administrative decisions affecting trade, to respond to requests for information by other members, & to notify changes in trade policies to the WTO. These internal transparency requirements are supplemented and facilitated by periodic country-specific reports (trade policy reviews) through the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM). The WTO system tries also to improve predictability & stability, discouraging the use of quotas and other measures used to set limits on quantities of imports.

5. Safety valves.

In specific circumstances, governments are able to restrict trade. There are three types of provisions in this direction: articles allowing for the use of trade measures to attain non economic objectives; articles aimed at ensuring "fair competition"; & provisions permitting intervention in trade for economic reasons.

Advantages of WTO.

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The WTO is a body designed to promote free trade through organising trade negiotiations & act as an independent arbiter in settling trade disputes.

To some extent the WTO has been successful in promoting greater free trade. Free trade has many advantages:

Lower prices. Greater competitiveness. Increased growth.

The 10 benefits of the WTO are:

1. The system helps to keep the peace.This sound like an exaggerated claim, & it

would be wrong to make too much of it. Nevertheless, the system does contribute to international peace, & if we understand why, we have a clearer picture of what the system actually does.

2. The system allows disputes to be handled constructively.

As trade expands in volume, in the numbers of products traded, and in the numbers of countries & companies trading, there is a greater chance that disputes will arise. The WTO system helps resolve these disputes peacefully and constructively.

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3. A system based on rules rather than power makes life easier for all.

The WTO cannot claim to make all countries equal. But it does reduce some inequalities, giving smaller countries more voice, & at the same time freeing the major powers from the complexity of having to negotiate trade agreements with each of their numerous trading partners.

4. Freer trade cuts the cost of living.We are all consumers. The prices we pay

for our food and clothing, our necessities & luxuries, and everything else in between, are affected by trade policies.

5. It gives consumers more choice, & a broader range of qualities to choose from.

Think of all the things we can now have because we can import them: fruits & vegetables out of season, foods, clothing & other products that used to be considered exotic, cut flowers from any part of the world, all sorts of household goods, books, music, movies, & so on.

6. Trade raises incomes.Lowering trade barriers allows trade to

increase, which adds to incomes - national

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incomes & personal incomes. But some adjustment is necessary.

7. Trade stimulates economic growth, & that can be good news for employment.

Trade clearly has the potential to create jobs. In practice there is often factual evidence that lower trade barriers have been good for employment. But the picture is complicated by a number of factors. Nevertheless, the alternative – protectionism - is not the way to tackle employment problems.

8. The basic principles make the system economically more efficient, & they cut costs.

Many of the benefits of the trading system are more difficult to summarize in numbers, but they are still important. They are the result of essential principles at the heart of the system, & they make life simpler for the enterprises directly involved in trade and for the producers of goods & services.

9. The system shields governments from narrow interests.

The GATT-WTO system which evolved in the second half of the 20th Century helps governments take a more balanced view of trade policy. Governments are better placed to

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defend themselves against lobbying from narrow interest groups by focusing on trade-offs that are made in the interests of everyone in the economy.

10. The system encourages good government.

Under WTO rules, once a commitment has been made to liberalize a sector of trade, it is difficult to reverse. The rules also discourage a range of unwise policies. For businesses, that means greater certainty & clarity about trading conditions. For governments it can often mean good discipline.

Disadvantages of Free Trade

However, the WTO has often been criticized for ignoring the plight of the developing world. It is argued the benefits of free trade accrue mostly to the developed world. In fact free trade has many disadvantages

In response to this the WTO may say that free trade has been an important engine of growth for developing countries in Asia. Although there may be some short term pain, it is worth it in the long run.

India’s commitment to WTO

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India is one of the founder members of WTO. The government of India has made a number of commitments to WTO which are:

1. Reduction of Tariff:India has committed to WTO to reduce

tariff on non agricultural & non textile goods.

2. Removal in Quantitative Restrictions:India had to phase out all quantitative

restrictions on 1429 items by April 1, 2001. The Government of India in line with WTO agreement removed quantitative restrictions on 714 items in the EXIM policy announced on March 31, 2001.

3. Commitments under TRIPS:The USA & European Union complained to

WTO that India had failed to meet its commitment to bring an amendment in patent act for granting of exclusive marketing rights (EMR) in India to an international company. The ruling of WTO dispute settlement panel made it obligatory for Indian government to make appropriate amendments in Patents Acts, 1970 by April 19, 1999. The government of India amended Patent Act in March 1999 that grants EMR for given period in field of pharmaceutical,

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chemicals & agricultural products o an international company.

4. Commitment under TRIMs:Under TRIMs agreement, the developing

country had a transition period of 5 years during which they could continue to maintain measures inconsistent with agreement provided they were duly notified. The Government of India notified to WTO regarding the local requirement in the production of pharmaceutical products.

5. Commitments under GATS:Under the General agreement on Trade in

Services (GATS), India has made commitment to WTO in 33 activities. The Foreign Service providers will be allowed to enter into these activities.

6. Commitments related wit Trademarks:Under WTO agreement the member

nations should protect the service trade & merchandise marks. So the Government of India amended Trade & Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 & passed it in parliament in 1999.

7. Commitments related to Industrial design & Layout design of integrated circuit:

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Under WTO agreement the Government of India has committed to protect new industrial design & layout design of integrated circuit. The bill related with industrial design & layout design was cleared by parliament in December 1999.

Impact of WTO agreement on Indian economy

Signing of WTO had far reaching effects not only on India’s foreign trade but also on internal economy.

Favourable Effects

1.Expansion in Trade:The World Bank has estimated that

because of Uruguay Round Package, merchandise trade in goods will increase by

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US$ 745 billion in 2005. India will also gain from it as India’s share in world export will increase from 0.5% to 1%.

2. Benefits from agreements on textile & clothing:

Phasing out of Multifibre Arrangement (MFA) by 2005 will benefit India. The exports of textile & clothing will increase from India.

3. Better prospects of agricultural exports:

Under agreement of agriculture, developed countries will have to reduce subsidies & trade barriers in agriculture. However, India as a developing country will continue with agricultural subsidies & higher rate of tariff on imports of agricultural products. Hence India expects to gain higher export earnings from agriculture.

4. Benefits from multilateral roles & disciplines:

The Uruguay Round Agreement provides for rules & disciplines related to anti-dumping subsidies, dispute-settlement, etc. This will create conditions for fair trade & a more favourable environment for India in new world economic order.

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5. Increase in service export:Due to GATs, India’s service export has

increased. It is growing at the rate of 13% p.a. as against 6% annual increase in world export.

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Unfavourable Effects

As a member of WTO India is likely to face a number of challenges:

1. Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights: (TRIPS):

Agreement on TRIPs is highly weighted in favour of patent holders. Since MNCs & developed countries hold large number of patents, they will be benefited most. Indian pharmaceutical industry will be worst affected by TRIPs & its extension to agriculture has serious consequences for India.

2. Trade Related Investment Measures:The agreement protects the interest of

foreign investors in developing countries. It could prove a drain on foreign exchange reserves in the form of profit transfer of developing countries causing BOP crisis.

3. Competition in services:There is a big difference in level of services

like banking, insurance, telecommunications between developed & developing countries. Therefore GATS will benefit more to developed countries & go against India.

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4. Non-tariff barriers:Various types of non-tariff barriers, which

have come up around the globe following the formation of WTO, have hurt experts from developing countries. 16 countries have put up 13 different non-tariff barriers against India.

WTO challenges & problems for Indian economy

As India goes for globalization & opens the market for foreign commodities & investment, many new challenges are arising in front of Indian economy.

1. Inequality within the structure of WTO:The structure of WTO is such where

inequality exists among the members. Developed country has definite advantage over developing countries.Hence developed countries force developing countries to sign certain agreements through bribing or threatening.

2. Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights:

Agreement on TRIPS is highly in favour of developing countries. Under TRIPS, every WTO member will have to provide 20 years

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protection to patents & 50 years protection to copyright.

3. Trade Related Investment Measures:Developed countries achieved everything

they wanted from TRIMS. Now developing countries cannot discourage foreign investment in their economy. This will certainly serve the interests of developed countries. Agreement on TRIMS provides for parity between home 7 foreign investments. But it is silent on controlling restrictive business practices of foreign investment.

4. Competition in Services:GATS provides for movement of services of

different types from one country to another.

5. Non-tariff barriers:Use of non-tariff barriers by developed

countries after the formation of WTO has affected the exports from developing countries. 16 countries have introduced 13 types of non-tariff barriers against India.

6. Agreement on agriculture:Developing countries that did not provide

subsidies during 1986-88 will not be allowed to introduce new subsidies. This agreement is

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also advantageous to developed countries & will go against the interest of India.

7. Protection of environment:It implies that a country like India which

has limited resources will have to divert them to environment protection rather than on development of facilities.

8. Trespassing of Sovereignty of Nations:WTO is an international body which will not

only encourage trade among its members. But it will also set rules & regulations to be followed by the member nations. It will force the member countries to change, amend & introduce laws in accordance with WTO agreements.

10 common misunderstandings about the WTO

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1. The WTO does NOT tell governments what to do.

The WTO does not tell governments how to conduct their trade policies. Rather, it’s a “member-driven” organization.

2. The WTO is NOT for free trade at any cost.

It’s really a question of what countries are willing to bargain with each other, of give and take, request and offer.

3. The WTO is NOT only concerned about commercial interests. This does NOT take priority over development.

The WTO agreements are full of provisions taking the interests of development into account. Sustainable development is a principal objective

4. In the WTO, commercial interests do NOT take priority over environmental protection.

Many provisions take environmental concerns specifically into account.

5. The WTO does NOT dictate to governments on issues such as food safety, and human health and safety. Again commercial interests do NOT override.

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The agreements were negotiated by WTO member governments, and therefore the agreements reflect their concerns.Safety concerns are built into the WTO agreements

6. The WTO does NOT destroy jobs or widen the gap between rich and poor.

The accusation is inaccurate and simplistic. Trade can be a powerful force for creating jobs and reducing poverty. Often it does just that. Sometimes adjustments are necessary to deal with job losses, and here the picture is complicated. In any case, the alternative of protectionism is not the solution.

7. Small countries are NOT powerless in the WTO.

Small countries would be weaker without the WTO. The WTO increases their bargaining power. Everyone has to follow the same rules.

8. The WTO is NOT the tool of powerful lobbies.

The WTO system offers governments a means to reduce the influence of narrow vested interests.

9. Weaker countries do have a choice; they are NOT forced to join the WTO.

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Most countries do feel that it’s better to be in the WTO system than to be outside it. That’s why the list of countries negotiating membership includes both large and small trading nations.

10. The WTO is NOT undemocratic.Decisions in the WTO are generally by

consensus. Agreements are ratified in parliaments. In principle, that’s even more democratic than majority rule because no decision is taken until everyone agrees.

Bibliography

TYBCom – Economics - Seth publicationsFYBMS - Managerial Economics – S.D.Aphale -

Vipul Prakashan

Webliography

www.google.comwww.wto.org

www.wikipedia.com

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