WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONTN/MA/W/18/Add.3
16 June 2003
(03-3149)
Negotiating Group on Market Access Original:  English
MODALITIES FOR NON-AGRICULTURAL MARKET ACCESS
Vertical NTB Modality
Communication from the United States
Addendum
The following communication, dated 28 May 2003, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of the United States.
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1. At the April 14-16 meeting of the Negotiating Group on Market Access, a number of practical
questions were raised about the U.S. proposal for “vertical” non-tariff barrier (NTB) agreements as anegotiating modality, as proposed in TN/MA/W/18/Add.1 of 25 March 2003.  The United States is
pleased to offer some further details on how the vertical NTB modality might work.
Introduction
2. The United States considers that NTB packages which bundle together a number of NTB
issues relevant to a single industry could be a creative new approach for dealing with NTBs.  Intoday’s world, many industries are highly globalized a nd, in fact, often meet with their counterparts in
regional or multilateral trade associations.  In such international meetings, industry representatives
discuss NTBs from the perspective of their particular industry.  At the beginning of the negotiating
process (i.e., before tariffs are liberalized), industries want assurance that NTBs critical to their
market access will also be addressed, so that they will achieve real market access.  Then, at the end of
the Doha NTB negotiations, industries will assess the results in terms of how their particular industry
benefits.  The United States believes that by adopting this single industry, or vertical, approach as one
NTB modality, it will be easier to manage the negotiating process and sell the results to industry in
some cases.
3. WTO Members are well aware of the significant time constraints for the DDA negotiations,
the large number of NTBs of interest to various parties, and the need to agree on a manageable
approach that will pay real dividends to industry and contribute to growth and development for all
WTO trading partners.  Given the globalized nature of many industries and the well-developed
international business ties, a vertical approach will make it easier for industries around the world toengage in the Doha NTB negotiations and to add value, in particular where global industry interests
converge.
4. The United States has suggested automotive products and textiles and apparel as possible
priority areas for vertical NTB agreements.  We note that there are other highly-globalized industries
with common interests in reducing trade barriers, and we remain open to suggestions from others on
additional industry areas that would be appropriate for the vertical approach.  For example, at theTN/MA/W/18/Add.3
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April 14-16 NGMA meeting, several WTO Members sugge sted fish and forest products as possible
sectors for vertical agreements.  One Member noted that vertical agreements in areas of interest to
developing countries could constitute a form of S&D in the NTB negotiations.  The United States
welcomes these suggestions, and looks forward to further discussion with interested WTO colleagues.
What would a vertical NTB agreement look like?
5. The United States considers the vertical approach to be highly flexible.  A vertical NTB
package could include a mix of multilateral, and plurilateral (including positive) elements.  Individual
WTO Members can customise the vertical agreement by adding bilateral issues negotiated on a
request/offer basis.
6. The multilateral elements could be negotiated “horizontally” in the NGMA or in another
negotiating group.  Such multilateral elements would likel y be generic, but of particular interest to a
particular industry (e.g., customs procedures).  The plurilateral elements could also be negotiated in
the NGMA or in another negotiating group if appropriate.  Such plurilateral elements would more
likely (but not necessarily) be specific to a particular industry – for example, particularly burdensomedocumentation required for imports of a specific industry.
7. The United States also suggests that the “positive” agreements we proposed in document
TN/MA/W/18/Add.1 of 25 March 2003 could be an additional element of vertical NTB packages.  To
reiterate the example of a positive agreement th at we cited in document TN/MA/W/18/Add.1 of 25
March 2003, in a particular situation or for a particular group of products, a group of Members would
agree to implement international standards on an MFN basis.  We would note that Members already
are free to adopt such standards in any case, subject to the provisions of the TBT agreement.  Doing
so in the context of vertical NTB packages would be just another way to reduce fragmentation and
promote harmonization efforts where they make sense.
8. Participation in vertical NTB packages is another flexible element.  Multilateral aspects of the
package would clearly include all WTO Members.  The vertical package, however, can also include
plurilateral, positive, and bilateral elements.  The United States suggests that the core group of
countries needed for the various plurilateral or positive elements of a single vertical agreement need
not be the same.  For example, there could be 20 WTO Members agreeing to one plurilateral element,
and these 20 plus an additional 16 Members agreeing to another plurilateral element.  All agreementswithin a single vertical package -- whether multilateral, plurilateral, positive, or bilateral – would be
applied on an MFN basis.
9. There is no intention to re-open existing agreements through this vertical agreement process.
Role of the NGMA in negotiating vertical NTB agreements
10. The proposed vertical NTB agreements are essentially packages of various NTB elements that
pertain to a single industry.  It will be up to Members of the NGMA to identify the elements of a
particular vertical package – e.g., customs documentation, licensing, etc.  The Members of the NGMAwill then need to determine if the issues are bein g dealt with elsewhere in the WTO, or whether they
should be negotiated in the NGMA.  If the issue is being dealt with elsewhere (for example, generic
customs issues), then NGMA Members will need to devise appropriate mechanisms to ensure that the
NGMA is fully informed of the developments in other committees or negotiating groups.  If the issue
is not already being dealt with elsewhere, then it could either be taken up by the NGMA or interestedWTO Members could pursue it in other appropriate committees or negotiating groups.
11. The United States suggests that to facilita te transparency in the negotiation of vertical
agreements, the NGMA should include a regular item on its agenda for reports of progress in otherTN/MA/W/18/Add.3
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committees or negotiating groups.  While these reports could come directly from the chairs of such
committees or negotiating groups, the United States suggests that it would be equally valuable to hear
presentations from NGMA members pursuing particular initiatives in other committees or negotiating
groups.  For example, under such an agenda item, the United States might flag a proposal that it made
in another group, others might raise other initiatives being pursued in another group, and still othersmight report on the status of relevant request/offer negotiations being conducted bilaterally or
plurilaterally within the NGMA.
12. As indicated above, once the elements of a particular vertical package are agreed, the NGMA
may have a role in negotiating one or more of the elements.
13. At the end of the negotiation, the NGMA will have two tasks: first, to repackage the elements
of the vertical NTB agreement including results from the work of other committees or negotiating
groups; and second, to devise appropriate mechanisms for memorialising commitments.  For example,
this could take the form of a short summary with the various elements listed; whether each element is
multilateral, plurilateral, etc.; if plurilateral, then a list of signatories to each plurilateral agreement.
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