Trade negotiations are frequently accompanied by sustainability impact assessment (SIA) to evaluate the potential economic, environmental, social and human rights effects of a possible agreement. SIAs can help promote environmental protection, and support the better integration of women,...

This report analyses the interactions between the investment and services chapters of 20 regional trade agreements. It classifies agreements into two broad categories of NAFTA-inspired and GATS-inspired agreements and identifies four major types of interaction between the investment and trade in...

This paper provides an in-depth examination of the trade effects of three regional trade agreements (RTAs) – the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Southern Cone Common Market (MERCOSUR) -- in the agricultural sector. Results...

3D printing technologies have attracted the attention of the trade policy community for their potential to disrupt international trade. It is argued that greater cross-border exchange in design files for local printing may lead to less trade in physical goods. New evidence presented in this...

Services play a more important role in trade and employment in the United Kingdom than in most other OECD countries. The UK services sector is supported by an open and transparent trade regime, policies that support competition and innovation, and regulatory transparency that facilitates the...

Closing gender gaps makes good economic sense. Advancing the aim of women’s economic empowerment will require policy action across a wide range of areas, including increasing their participation in international trade. Although trade policies are not de jure discriminatory, they impact women...

Data flows across border underpin today’s digitalised and globally interconnected world, but have also given rise to a range of concerns, including about privacy protection, intellectual property protection, regulatory reach, competition, and industrial policy. This has led to the emergence of...

The number of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) have increased markedly over the last decade, with many addressing market openness and rule-making for services trade. Recent RTAs are breaking down existing barriers: on average, removing between 10% and 40% of services restrictions present in the...

Rules affecting digital trade are complex and spread across a diverse set of issues and fora. This paper provides an inventory of existing rules, standards, and principles related to issues that are being discussed in the context of the Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) at the WTO, highlighting...

Today, more parcels are crossing international borders than ever before. While this has given rise to new opportunities, not least for individuals and SMEs who are now more directly engaged in trade, it is also raising new challenges. This paper explores this complex and evolving environment,...