The U.S. and China announced they'd reached a deal to temporarily cut tariffs in a move that offered a reprieve to global economies.
U.S. and China reach deal to temporarily slash tariffs
‘Very positive news’ for countries’, global economies says analyst
WTO chiefs past and present demand rapid reform to keep global free trade alive
A former World Trade Organization boss has said the future terms of global trade, rocked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping protectionist tariffs, could be decided outside the 30-year-old international watchdog unless it reforms itself fast.
WTO aims to reduce staffing costs after US funding pause
The World Trade Organization said on Tuesday it is reviewing staff costs after the United States paused funding to the institution.
WHO calls for stronger surveillance of H5N1 bird flu among animals
A World Health Organization official on Thursday called for stronger surveillance in animals for evidence of infection with H5N1 bird flu in order to curb its spread.
WTO meeting seeks modest outcomes, with global trade at ‘critical juncture’
Striking deals by consensus becoming more difficult amid signs global economy fragmenting
Trade ministers from around the world gathered in Abu Dhabi on Monday for a World Trade Organization meeting that aims to set new global commerce rules, but its chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and delegates sought to curb expectations.
Red Sea crisis cutting farm exports from Ukraine, minister says
Wheat shipments via Suez plunge amid Red Sea attacks: WTO
The situation in the Red Sea has led to a slowdown in Ukrainian agricultural exports in January, agriculture minister Mykola Solsky said on Thursday.
U.S. wants WTO dispute system fixed by 2024
Appeals body frozen since Trump era; Washington 'very committed' to reform
Geneva | Reuters — The United States is entering a third phase of talks with countries to reform the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) hobbled trade dispute arbitration system and aims for it to be “fully functioning” by the end of 2024, the U.S. ambassador to the WTO told Reuters on Thursday. The WTO’s appeals bench, […] Read more
WTO strikes global trade deals deep into overtime
Deals reached on food security, health and fishing; formerly defiant India joins consensus
Geneva | Reuters — The World Trade Organization’s 164 members approved a series of trade agreements early on Friday that included commitments on fish and pledges on health and food security after more than five gruelling days of negotiations. The deals were ground out over five days of bargaining at a conference of more than […] Read more
Food crisis will drive record displacement levels higher, UN refugee chief says
Geneva | Reuters — A food security crisis stoked by the Ukraine war is set to push more people to flee their homes in poorer countries, driving record levels of global displacement even higher, the head of the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said. A report by the U.N. body showed on Thursday that some 89.3 […] Read more
Nigeria’s Okonjo-Iweala makes history as new head of WTO
Geneva-based body leaderless for six months; Trump paralyzed some of WTO's functions
Geneva/Washington | Reuters — Three months after the Trump administration rejected her, former Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala received unanimous backing on Monday to become the first woman and first African director-general of the World Trade Organization. A self-declared “doer” with a track record of taking on seemingly intractable problems, Okonjo-Iweala will have her work […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
