Trade integration is increasingly a matter of addressing the effect that regulatory policies have in segmenting national markets. Differences in regulation across markets increase costs for firms and thus act as a barrier to trade. In order for trade to continue to work for everyone the WTO will need to focus more on the interface between trade and regulatory policies. This panel will discuss current thinking and research on the design of international regulatory cooperation, recent developments and initiatives that have been taken in this regard, and the need and scope for the WTO to devote more attention to regulating regulation. In this context, the following questions, on the design of regulatory cooperation, will be addressed:
What is the state of the art in terms of WTO obligations regarding regulatory policies?
How does it compare to arrangements we observe in recent vintage bilateral and regional trade agreements?
Is divergence between the current WTO and new PTA approaches in this area a reason for the diminishing role of WTO in promoting market integration?
What could the role of the WTO be in a world where ‘clubs’ are becoming increasingly prominent in addressing regulatory trade barriers?
This event is organised by ICTSD, the European University Institute (EUI) and the World...