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PRESS RELEASE: PRESS/TPRB/314

TRADE POLICY REVIEW:

Positive economic performance but continued reforms needed

The European Communities’ economic performance was generally good in 2006-07, although it weakened significantly from the second half of 2008 due to the global financial and economic crisis. A robust recovery and sustained economic growth in the European Communities will hinge on it continuing to undertake key structural reforms, according to the WTO Secretariat report on the trade policies and practices of the European Communities.

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The WTO report, along with a policy statement by the Government, will be the basis for the Trade Policy Review (TPR) by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO.

These include further liberalization of services, both at the intra-EC level and vis-à-vis third countries, and of its agricultural policies through the simplification of its tariff structure and the reduction of its high tariff rates on, and incentives to the production and export of, agricultural products. Such reforms would also contribute to the improvement of the EC’s resource allocation and advance the full establishment of its internal market.

The report also notes that the European Communities, as the world’s leading exporter and the second-largest importer of goods, is expected to continue contributing to making trade play a key role in shortening and reversing the current global economic slowdown.

The report, along with a policy statement by the European Communities, will be the basis for the ninth Trade Policy Review (TPR) of the European Communities by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO on 6 and 8 April 2009.

The following documents are available in MS Word format.

• Secretariat report
  > Contents and summary observations
  > Economic environment
  > Trade and investment regimes
  > Trade policies and practices by measure
  > Trade policies by sector
  > Appendix tables
    
• Government report
    

Note  back to top

Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO agreements, in which member countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each review, two documents are prepared: a policy statement by the government of the member under review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.

Print copies of previous TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop.

The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press, 4611-F Assembly Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States.

Schedule of forthcoming reviews  back to top

Mozambique: 22 and 24 April 2009
Solomon Islands: 6 and 8 May 2009
New Zealand: 10 and 12 June 2009

SEE ALSO    > Full list of previous TPRs

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