The WTO launches World Trade Report 2008: Trade in a Globalizing World

15 Jul 2008

Trade and globalization have brought greater prosperity to hundreds of millions as well as greater stability among nations, according to a report published today by the World Trade Organization.

Trade has allowed nations to benefit from specialization and economies of scale to produce more efficiently. It has raised productivity, supported the spread of knowledge and new technologies, and enriched the range of choices available to consumers. But deeper integration into the world economy has not always proved popular, nor have the benefits of trade and globalization necessarily reached all sections of society. As a consequence, trade scepticism is on the rise in certain quarters.

This year’s World Trade Report, entitled “Trade in a Globalizing World”, is devoted to an examination of the gains from international trade and the challenges arising from higher levels of integration. Over many years, governments in most countries have increasingly opened their economies to international trade, whether through multilateral trade negotiations, increased regional cooperation or as part of domestic reform programmes.

“Few would contest the benefits that globalization and trade have brought in terms of greater prosperity for hundreds of millions, as well as greater stability among nations. But many individuals in different societies across the world have shared little or not all in the benefits. The challenges facing governments in managing globalization are formidable, and success in spreading prosperity more widely requires a strong common purpose” says WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy in an introduction to the Report.

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Source: WTO News