Stephen Jacobi, Executive Director of NZIBF, traveled to San Francisco for APEC Leaders’ week and writes his thoughts on the outcome.
The WTO: Fundamental to sustained prosperity and inclusive growth

26 April 2019
The WTO and its predecessor the GATT have created and sustained a system of multilateral trade rules which have helped to generate over 70 years of global prosperity, and created dynamic opportunities for businesses, communities and economies, including developing economies. WTO rules enable businesses to operate with greater confidence and at lower cost in world markets by reducing protectionist barriers and behind-the-border distortions. Enforcement of trade rules through binding dispute settlement has to a large extent provided crucial certainty for business planning, operations and investment. The WTO has also fostered trade and economic growth, created jobs and helped alleviate poverty around the world.
The benefits that the WTO system offers derive from both its authority and its efficacy. Any weakening of this system is a matter of significant concern. Business and investor confidence are reduced if market access is unpredictable, if WTO commitments are not met, if markets are volatile and if value chains are disrupted. The prospect of a world in which trade disputes are not settled through independent, rules- based arbitration would be deeply troubling. Such actions heighten uncertainty, drive businesses towards less inclusive and resilient models, and lower the propensity for businesses to provide good jobs.
That said, the Asia-Pacific business community recognises that the current WTO system, derived from its predecessor the GATT and now over 70 years old, has not kept pace with the rapidly-changing global economy. Aspects of its judicial, rule-making and administrative functions need reform, including the following:
- We urge economies to expeditiously address the impasse in the process of appointing members of the Appellate Body. A full set of Appellate Body members is needed by December 2019 for the WTO dispute settlement mechanism to operate effectively. ABAC welcomes the discussions underway among members on reforms to ensure that the dispute settlement system works effectively;
- Unfinished business from the Doha Round should be addressed through resumed negotiations on agriculture, services and rules elements;
- WTO members should respect obligations related to transparency in policies and practices, and should be promptly held accountable for a sustained pattern of non-compliance;
- Business welcomes WTO initiatives that would better reflect 21st-century economic models and business concerns in WTO rules, including the WTO negotiation on trade-related aspects of e- commerce; ABAC has undertaken extensive work on supply chain connectivity and digital economy issues which may offer useful inputs to this process;
- WTO members should develop mechanisms to identify and address non-tariff barriers more promptly and effectively, drawing on ABAC’s agreed Cross-Cutting NTM Principles;
- Finally, plurilateral WTO negotiations must be open to all members willing to move ahead to more ambitious or new rules in specific areas, must be consistent with WTO principles and should be undertaken with a view to serving as building blocks to consensus multilateral outcomes in future. The APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) urges APEC economies to engage constructively to support and reform the WTO including to reflect evolving business needs and models. ABAC is absolutely determined that our shared commitment with APEC economies to improve the WTO will lead to an institution that is relevant for all.
REGISTER WITH TRADE WORKS
Register to stay up to date with latest news, as well as saving and discussing articles you’re interested in.
Latest News
Of APEC, CPTPP and IPEF
While New Zealand was sorting out its new Government, the alphabet soup which is trade got a good stirring in San Francisco. This was APEC Leaders’ week, the annual gathering of Leaders, Ministers, business people and other stakeholders from the 21 economies of...
Remarks to Shanghai Forum: “China and CPTPP – New Zealand Expectations and Advice”
FUNDAN UNIVERSITY, SHANGHAI, 28 OCTOBER 2023 STEPHEN JACOBI, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM 杰珂陛 执行董事 新西兰国际商业论坛 CHINA AND CPTPP – NEW ZEALAND EXPECTATIONS AND ADVICE It is an honour for me to speak in such a distinguished forum. My thanks...
ADDRESS TO THE 53rd ONE STOP UPDATE FOR THE ACCOUNTANT IN BUSINESS – GLOBAL ECONOMIC UPDATE
AUCKLAND, 16 OCTOBER 2023 STEPHEN JACOBI - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NZ INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM Watch the full speech here. It’s a pleasure to be back with you for the 53rd edition of the One Stop Update and my thanks to Brightstar for giving me this opportunity once...
EYES OPENED DURING INDIA VISIT
Published by Newsroom on 6 September 2023 Stephen Jacobi reports on the recent business delegation to India. Every country has its contrasts and a subcontinent of 1.4 billion with thousands of years of history has more than most. Today’s India can reach the...
GUEST BLOG: Raewyn Bleakley, Chief Executive, New Zealand Food and Grocery Council
Exporting is an important part of the business of many NZFGC members whose brands we see daily on supermarket shelves. For some, exporting outweighs what they sell on our shores, while others are looking to break into new markets to open up growth opportunities beyond...
New Zealand business delegation “over the moon” with Indian trade and investment opportunities
MEDIA RELEASE - Friday 1 September, 2023 The involvement of New Zealand businesses in the successful Indian Moon landing epitomises the trade and investment opportunities between the two countries. Just as Rakon and RocketLab provided innovative elements to the...
REMARKS TO INDIA NEW ZEALAND TRADE AND ECONOMIC ROUNDTABLE
DELHI, 28 AUGUST 2023 STEPHEN JACOBI - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NZ INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM Opening remarks It’s a pleasure for me and the entire New Zealand delegation to be in Delhi today just days since India’s magnificent moon landing. These days India is literally...
Large business delegation bound for India
MEDIA RELEASE - Tuesday 22 August, 2023 Fifty business representatives will leave later this week bound for Delhi, making it one of the largest delegations ever to head for India. The delegation, comprising members and senior leaders of five business organisations,...
India and New Zealand: The next innings
As published in the NZ Herald, 18 August 2023 By Stephen Jacobi As a trade mission prepares to depart for Delhi, Stephen Jacobi of the New Zealand International Business Forum considers the prospects for growing two-way trade and investment between India and New...
CRUNCH TIME FOR CPTPP
As published in the NZ Herald, 18 August 2023. By Stephen Jacobi, Executive Director, NZ International Business Forum. Following the Ministers’ meeting in Auckland, what is the outlook for CPTPP as the world’s most ambitious free trade agreement? When Ministers...
INDIA AND NEW ZEALAND: GETTING ONTO THE FRONT FOOT
A 50 person business delegation is about to depart for India. It follows a major report by the India New Zealand Business Council (INZBC), published in April. The report took a critical look at the relationship, finding a number of shortcomings and advocating...
ADDRESS TO THE HAWKE’S BAY BRANCH OF THE NZ INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS – “TRADE SECURITY – FINDING NEW BASKETS”
TUESDAY 15 AUGUST 2023 STEPHEN JACOBI, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NZ INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FORUM It’s a pleasure to be with you once again. This is an address about trade but also about baskets and eggs – in particular how many eggs and how many baskets we need to prosper...
SUBMISSION TO THE PARLIAMENTARY FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE AND TRADE COMMITTEE
INTERNATIONAL TREATY EXAMINATON OF THE NEW ZEALAND EUROPEAN UNION FREE TRADE AGREEMENT, JULY 2023 Introduction and Summary This submission is made on behalf of the New Zealand International Business Forum (NZIBF) whose members are listed at Annex A[1]. NZIBF is a...
CER CELEBRATES A RUBY ANNIVERSARY
The Australia-New Zealand Leadership, the semi-annual gathering of Ministers and business leaders, has been described as a “successful symbol of trans-Tasman togetherness[1]”. And the togetherness vibe was certainly present when the Forum gathered in Wellington...
Asia-Pacific businesses urge APEC Leaders to act on equity, sustainability and opportunity in an increasingly challenging landscape
APEC NEWS RELEASE issued by the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) Meeting in Cebu, the Philippines, this week, the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) stressed the need for action in an increasingly fragmented and difficult operating environment. “Our theme for...