{"id":157312,"date":"2018-04-08T19:31:06","date_gmt":"2018-04-08T21:31:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/?p=157312"},"modified":"2018-04-08T23:33:17","modified_gmt":"2018-04-09T01:33:17","slug":"wto-disputes-can-undermine-trade-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wto-disputes-can-undermine-trade-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"WTO: disputes can undermine trade growth"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Dubai \u2013 In an interview released this Sunday (08) by the organization of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM), a forum on foreign direct investments to be held in Dubai from Monday (09) to Wednesday (11), the deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Yonov Frederick Agah, said that a trade war and increased tariff could undermine the growth of world trade.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_157305\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-157305\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-157305 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/AIM3-1-300x267.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/AIM3-1-300x267.jpg 300w, https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/AIM3-1-768x685.jpg 768w, https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/AIM3-1-1024x913.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-157305\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Agah: WTO is the adequate forum to settle disputes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The main players in this dispute, currently, are the United States and China, which announced, last week, the increase in tariffs on several products imported from one another that are worth USD 100 billion in bilateral trade.\u00a0 First action came from the US, which had already raised tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum, and the Chinese retaliation soon followed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEconomic data and forecasts from the IMF, OECD, World Bank and others have been revised steadily upwards over the last year, which would tend to indicate a sustained recovery of trade in 2018 following strong trade growth in 2017,\u201d said Agah, according to the AIM press release.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHowever, trade frictions and geopolitical tensions have also risen sharply in recent months. Increased use of restrictive trade measures \u2013 and the retaliation that this would invite \u2013 could easily undermine a generally positive outlook for trade,\u201d added the WTO executive.<\/p>\n<p>According to him, protectionist measures, geopolitical tensions and uncertainties over policies for the sector are seen as the main risks for world trade. \u201cWTO is the only global trade body, it provides the only forum where all countries \u2013 including the most powerful \u2013 can cooperate on the growing number of trade issues that impact them collectively,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n<p>Agah said that the WTO will launch on April 12 its annual trade statistics and trade forecasts. In February, the organization released its most recent forecasts for the sector, and they pointed to a strong growth in Q1.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo reiterate, the outlook for global trade and output based on economic fundamentals is positive for 2018 and beyond. However, continued recovery is predicated on stability of the current trading environment, which is tenuous and could easily be reversed by political tensions and trade frictions. Member countries should use the multi-lateral system to resolve their differences and prevent economic uncertainty from undermining growth,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>US president Donald Trump has shown to be particularly averse to the multi-lateral system and not only in the trade sector. \u201cTrade disputes inevitably arise between countries, but settling them through neutral, rules-based and transparent process keeps them from escalating,\u201d remarked Agah, recalling that WTO members were the ones that negotiated the rules themselves. \u201cThe fact that the WTO provides a transparent and predictable environment for international trade reduces uncertainty and can promote stronger trade and economic growth, which over the long run this means higher living standards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><strong style=\"font-style: inherit;\">AIM<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s facing this recovery scenario of the world economy that the AIM will take place. The conference is an initiative from the Ministry of Economy of the United Arab Emirates and has the support of the emir of Dubai, Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who will open the event. Maktoum is also UAE\u2019s prime minister and vice president.<\/p>\n<p>Representatives of the public and private sector will discuss topics such as investment trends, public-private partnerships, sustainability, investment promotion, crypto-currencies and sovereign funds. Agah will take part in a panel. In the investments sector, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) also forecasts growth for this year.<\/p>\n<p>Among the countries that will hold presentations with the purpose of attracting investments are the UAE, China, Georgia, Italy, India, South Korea, Russia, Egypt, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Jordan, Botswana, Cameroon and Nigeria. Some Brazilian public bodies will take part and there will be a panel dedicated to Latin America and the Caribbean.<\/p>\n<p>The opening discussion will focus on the induction of sustainable growth via foreign direct investments. The increase in protective measures will also be the topic of a panel.<\/p>\n<p>Besides the conference, the event will hold an investments round and a business fair, where public bodies and companies will present their projects.<\/p>\n<p>For further information, click on the logo below to visit the AIM\u2019s website.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Translated by S\u00e9rgio Kakitani<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aimcongress.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-157307 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/logoaim-257x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"257\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/logoaim-257x300.png 257w, https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/logoaim-768x895.png 768w, https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/logoaim-878x1024.png 878w, https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/logoaim.png 1645w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 257px) 100vw, 257px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"credits-overlay\" data-target=\".wp-image-157304\">Press Release<\/div>\n<div class=\"credits-overlay\" data-target=\".wp-image-157305\">Divulga\u00e7\u00e3o<\/div>\n<div class=\"credits-overlay\" data-target=\".wp-image-157307\">Divulga\u00e7\u00e3o<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On the eve of the Annual Investment Meeting, in Dubai, the deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization, Yonov Frederick Agah, has said that a trade war and protectionism could undermine the sector\u2019s growth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1454,"featured_media":157304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[91],"tags":[1808,343,223,139,496,1810,1843],"class_list":{"0":"post-157312","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-aim","9":"tag-annual-investment-meeting","10":"tag-comercio-en","11":"tag-dubai","12":"tag-investments","13":"tag-trade","14":"tag-wto"},"wps_subtitle":"On the eve of the Annual Investment Meeting, in Dubai, the deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization, Yonov Frederick Agah, has said that a trade war and protectionism could undermine the sector\u2019s growth. 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