Trade glossary · institutions

WTO

World Trade Organization — the multilateral institution that administers global trade rules and dispute settlement. Successor to GATT (1995).

The WTO (164 member states as of 2024) administers the Marrakesh Agreement and a suite of binding accords on goods, services (GATS), and intellectual property (TRIPS). Its dispute-settlement body has been weakened since 2019 by US blocking of appellate-body appointments. The WTO publishes complementary trade statistics in its WITS portal alongside Comtrade.

Authoritative source: WTO ↗

Related terms

Most-favoured-nation (MFN)

A WTO principle requiring members to grant any trade concession given to one country to all other members equally, except within registered FTAs.

Free trade agreement (FTA)

A treaty between two or more countries that reduces or eliminates tariffs, quotas, and other trade barriers. Examples: USMCA, EU single market, RCEP, ASEAN.