A very brief history of the trading system -- The WTO in a nutshell -- Trade in goods -- Services, intellectual property, and plurilateral agreements -- Dispute settlement and transparency -- Developing countries and the multilateral trading system -- Whither the trading system?

This paper analyzes a prominent dimension of the initial policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic observed in many countries: the imposition of export restrictions and actions to facilitate imports. Weekly data on the use of trade policy instruments during the first seven months of the COVID-19...