Regional trade agreements and the multilateral trading system

Such agreements ensure a non discriminatory approach with potential mutual benefits for all parties. They reduce trade distortions and simplify administration. The eight rounds of multilateral trade negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) have made major contributions to economic growth and higher living standards around the world since World War II. The most recent Uruguay Round resulted in substantial improvements, including establishment of the WTO, inclusion of agriculture and services in the multilateral trade regime, and multilateralization of most of the GATT's plurilateral codes. ICC strongly supports the new broad-based round of multilateral trade negotiations launched in November 2001 at the 4th Ministerial Conference of the WTO in Doha, Qatar. World business is particularly encouraged by the new mandate agreed at Doha to pursue "…negotiations aimed at clarifying and improving disciplines and procedures under the existing WTO provisions applying to regional trade agreements…"