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WT/TPR/W/ 153 
12 October 2018  
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Trade Policy Review Body    
 
* In Original language only/ En langue originale seulement /En el idioma original solamente . 
  
ISRAEL 
DRAFT MINUTES  OF THE MEETING* HELD ON 17 AND 19 JULY 2018  
Delegations are invited to submit factual corrections, if any, on their own statement to the 
Secretariat ( Mrs Barbara Blanquart: barbara.blanquart@wto.org , or to  tprd@wto.org ) no later 
than 26 October 2018 . 
 
Organe d'examen des politiques commerciales  
 
ISRAËL 
PROJET DE COMPTE REN DU DE LA RÉUNION* TENUE LES 17 ET 19 JUILLET 201 8 
Les délégations sont invitées à soumettre  leurs éventuelles corrections factuelles concernant leurs 
propres déclarations au Secrétariat ( Mme Barbara Blanquart: barbara.blanquart@wto.org , ou 
tprd@wto.org ) le 26 octobre 2018  au plus tard.  
 
Órgano de Examen de las Políticas Comerciales  
 
ISRAEL 
PROYECTO DE ACTA DE LA REUNIÓN* CELEBRADA LOS DÍAS 17 Y 19 DE JULIO DE 2018 
Las delegaciones pueden enviar a la Secretaría (Sr a. Barbara Blanquart: 
barbara.blanquart@wto.org , o tprd@wto.org ) a más tardar el 26 de octubre de 2018  las 
correcciones fácticas que deseen introducir en sus propias declaraciones.  
 
 
_______________  
 
  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  TRADE POLICY REVIEW  
 
ISRAEL 
DRAFT  MINUTES OF THE MEET ING 
Chairperson: H.E. Mr. Eloi Laourou (Benin)  
CONTENTS  
 
1   INTRODUCTORY REM ARKS BY THE CHAIRPER SON ................................ ......................  3 
2   OPENING STATEMEN T BY THE REPRESENTAT IVE OF ISRAE L ................................ ....... 5 
3   STATEMENT BY THE  DISCUSSANT  ................................ ................................ ...............  8 
4   STATEMENTS BY ME MBERS  ................................ ................................ ........................  13 
5   REPLIES BY THE R EPRESENTATIVE OF ISR AEL AND ADDITIONAL C OMMENTS  ..........  36 
6   CONCLUDING REMAR KS BY THE CHAIRPERSO N ................................ ........................  41 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Note: Advance written  questions and additional questions by WTO Members, and the replies provided 
by Israel are reproduced in document WT/TPR/M/376/Add.1 and will be available online at 
http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp_rep_e.htm.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS  BY THE CHAIRPERSON  
1.1.  The fifth Trade Policy Review of Israel was held on 17 and 19 July 2018. The Chairperson, 
H.E. Mr Eloi Laourou (Benin), welcomed the delegation of Israel headed by Mr. Ohad Cohen, Trade 
Commissioner of the Foreign Trade Administration at the Mi nistry of Economy and Industry; the rest 
of the delegation; and the discussant, H.E. Ambassador Roberto Zapata (Mexico) . 
1.2.  The Chairperson recalled the purpose of trade policy reviews and the main elements of 
procedures for the meeting. The report by Israel was contained in document WT/TPR/G/376 and 
that of the WTO Secretariat in document WT/TPR/S/376.  
1.3.  Questions by the following delegations had been submitted in writing before the deadline: 
Mexico; Colombia; China; Brazil; European Union; Costa Rica; Japan; C anada; New Zealand; 
Russian Federation; Ukraine; and Australia. The following delegations submitted written questions 
after the deadline: Argentina; Dominican Republic; Chinese Taipei; Guatemala; United States; 
Turkey; Korea, Republic of; Ecuador; Thailand ; and the Philippines.  
1.4.  During the previous TPR meeting in 2012, Members had commended Israel for its impressive 
economic performance and quick recovery from the global economic crisis, thanks to sound economic 
fundamentals and prudent regulation of its fin ancial markets. Members had welcomed Israel's 
unilateral trade liberalization initiatives. In this regard, MFN tariffs on a range of consumer products 
had been eliminated in 2012, and further tariff reductions or eliminations on textiles, apparel and 
certain agricultural or food items were to be implemented. Several Members had noted Israel's 
progress in aligning its technical requirements with international norms. The planned tax reform for 
alcoholic beverages had also been welcomed.  
1.5.  In the current review period, Israel's economic growth averaged 3.3% driven primarily by 
private consumption, domestic investment, and strong services exports. Trade and trade related 
reform initiatives were undertaken to increase competition in several sectors, such as finance , 
telecoms, and air and maritime transport. Also, Israel was in the process of establishing a sovereign 
wealth fund for the purposes of safeguarding tax revenues from natural gas production. As indicated 
by the advanced written questions, Members were look ing forward to learning more about Israel's 
reform agenda in these areas.  
1.6.  With regards to Israel's participation in the multilateral trading system, Members also recalled 
that, at the time of the previous Review, they had commended Israel for its strong co mmitment to 
the WTO. Some Members had highlighted Israel's active participation in the revision of the 
Agreement on Government Procurement, and its support for services trade liberalization in the WTO 
and the updating of the ITA Agreement. Israel continued  to be an active participant in the multilateral 
trading system. Notably, it had accepted the Trade Facilitation Agreement on 8 December 2017. 
Since the last Review, Israel concluded free trade agreements with Colombia and Panama, which 
are not yet in forc e. 
1.7.  With respect to trade policy, while at the time of the previous Review Members had highlighted 
the overall openness of the Israeli economy, concern was expressed about the high level of tariff 
protection in agriculture, particularly dairy products. Isra el was encouraged to examine the scope 
for market -oriented reforms in agriculture and further opening its markets to imports of agricultural 
and food products. Israel was also invited to review its agricultural tariff and tariff quota system and 
consider c onverting mixed and compound duties into ad valorem  duties, to improve the transparency 
of its agricultural trade regime.  
1.8.  Israel, a net importer of agricultural products, took measures to improve market access in the 
agricultural sector since its last Revi ew, such as tariff reductions and the implementation of 
autonomous tariff quotas. Nonetheless, the sector continued to be protected by relatively high tariffs, 
including non -ad valorem  duties, and by export subsidies. These export subsidies are due to ceas e 
on 1 January 2023. A number of questions were raised on Israel's agricultural sector for this Review.  
1.9.  Other issues of interest to Members at the time of the previous Review in 2012 included the 
following: the considerable gap between Israel's bound and a pplied tariffs; Israel had been urged to 
complete the transposition of its Schedule of Concessions from HS1996 nomenclature; the 
complexity of Israel's non -automatic import licensing procedures; the nature and basis of the WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  "safeguard levy" within the frame work of the Trade Levies and Safeguard Measures Law; calls had 
been made for greater clarity and transparency of Israel's investment incentives; Israel had been 
requested to review the rationale and basis of export -based eligibility criteria; and concerns over 
intellectual property protection had been raised, particularly regarding patents, copyright, and 
enforcement.  
1.10.   Israel's average applied MFN tariff was reduced from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018, largely 
as a result of unilateral elimination of import du ties on several products. During the review period, 
Israel also transposed its Schedule XLII of concessions from the Harmonized System (HS) 1996 
nomenclature to the HS2012 nomenclature. As the Secretariat report noted, it was presently under 
waiver for the  introduction of HS2017 changes.  
1.11.   The Chairperson drew Members' attention to some issues of interest to them derived from 
the advance written questions submitted for this TPR. These included, among others, the following: 
outstanding notifications, in partic ular of SPS -related measures; steps to update the 
HS classification; competition matters and whether Israel would consider further liberalizing its 
foreign investment regime in order to stimulate competition; Israel's incentives system and 
innovation polic y; the state of play to implement certain WIPO treaties, and whether Israel had plans 
to reform its agricultural support system, notably for dairy and eggs.  
1.12.   This meeting was to be a good opportunity for Members to discuss in greater detail issues of 
intere st to them and of systemic importance to the multilateral trading system. The Chairperson was 
looking forward to a fruitful exchange.  
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  2  OPENING STATEMENT BY  THE REPRESENTATIVE OF ISRAEL (MR. OHAD COHEN)  
2.1.  Mr. Chairman, thank you for your introductory remarks . 
2.2.  Israel welcomes the opportunity to review recent developments in the Israeli economy and its 
trade policy in the framework of the Trade Policy Review Mechanism of the WTO.  
2.3.  We are honoured by the presence of Ambassador Roberto Zapata, Permanent Represent ative 
of Mexico to the WTO, who is serving as the discussant in this TPR of Israel. I am confident that your 
contribution will enlighten the discussion and I look forward to hearing your comments.  
2.4.  I would also like to commend the efforts made and time spen t by the Secretariat towards this 
TPR and the Report, which I believe is of very high -quality.  
2.5.  I would also like to thank the 22 Members who presented written questions and comments. 
This transparency exercise is one of the pillars of the multilateral trad ing system and the Members' 
active interest in Israel's TPR is a reflection of the importance of this tool. We have received many 
written questions during the last few days prior to today's meeting, and we will indeed make every 
effort to respond to these questions and others that might arise in the course of the review.  
2.6.  Finally, I would like to thank the Israeli team, some of them are present here, some of them 
are still in Jerusalem, for their hard work that has been invested in the past few months towar ds 
this exercise. Thank you, team.  
2.7.  Looking at the Israeli economy, it has done well in recent years. Israel's GDP per capita has 
increased to over US$40,000 in 2017, while averaging an economic growth of 3.3% since our last 
TPR. I am pleased to report that  this growth level is higher than the OECD average for this period. 
Israel also enjoys a historic low unemployment rate of 4.2% in 2017 as well as very low inflation 
rates. Interest rate has remained low during this period, reaching 0.1% in February 2015 a nd 
remaining at this level since. If one remembers, Israel until 1976 (40 years ago) was a World Bank 
client country and today we are with more than US $40,000 GDP per capita. We feel very proud and 
we celebrate 70 years of independence. Services accounts f or around 80% of Israel's GDP – clearly 
the growth engine of our economy. Israel is a net exporter of services. In terms of figures, our 
exports of services have increased strongly, reaching US$44.3 billion in 2017, up from 
US$31.7  billion during our last review in 2012.  
2.8.  Mr. Chairman, you mentioned the natural gas. This reminds me of a story that we tell in a 
Passover. Passover is one of the largest Jewish holidays where we tell the story of Exodus, where 
the people of Israel left Egypt towards Israel. Mois es, who was our leader at the time, was wondering 
why it took him 40 years in the desert to move the people of Israel to Egypt (it doesn't take 40 years 
to move from Egypt to Israel even if you walk very slowly). We have many reasons and one is that 
we thi nk that it took him such a long time because he was looking for the only country in the Middle 
East that does not produce oil. Oil we don't have but natural gas we have. The year 2013 marked a 
milestone for Israel's energy independence, as major domestic s upplies of natural gas came on 
stream from the Tamar field. This will be reducing energy costs and the use of polluting energy 
sources. In addition, it will open new industrial opportunities for Israel.  
2.9.  Since 2011, one of the main drivers of our trade pol icy has been tackling the cost of living, and 
this continues to be one of our main challenges.  
2.10.   As the Report mentions, Israel has taken several measures and policies with the aim of 
reducing the cost of living. Perhaps one of our more visible efforts has been the systematic unilateral 
elimination of import duties, which has brought the NAMA average applied MFN tariff down to 3.0% 
in 2018, from an already low 4.2% back in 2012, bringing our total duty -free lines to around 67% 
of our schedule. As these reduc tions have been mainly unilateral, all WTO Members have benefited 
from them. Recognizing the benefits of tariff reductions to the multilateral trading system, Israel 
has sought initiatives in the WTO that aim to bring more tariff reductions to the WTO Memb ers. This 
was the main reason for Israel to be part of the Information Technology Agreement expansion (as 
well as in the original one) and one of the main reasons for us to join the Environmental Goods 
Agreement; this last one is still pending but we hope Members will get back to the negotiating table 
and conclude it soon.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  2.11.   Continuing with our efforts in agriculture, Israel introduced new voluntary Tariff Rate Quotas 
open for all WTO members on a number of highly demanded food and agricultural products such as 
fresh and chilled beef, hard cheese and olive oil. Furthermore, Israel was one of the first Members 
to notify our commitment to stop agriculture export subsidies from January 2023, as mandated in 
the Nairobi Ministerial package.  
2.12.   As we all know well agri culture is a special sector which, for many reasons, poses a great 
challenge for Israel. Israel exceeded its AMS levels for the period 2011 to 2014. However, Israel has 
had an open and transparent process of discussing and consulting with Members. The AMS levels 
for the period 2015 to 2016 were below the threshold but we recognize that there is still work to be 
done. It is important to note that Israel is up to date in all its notifications in agriculture.  
2.13.   An area where we made good progress since the last  TPR is the transposition of Israel's 
Harmonized System (HS) schedule. In this regard, Israel, together with the Secretariat, transposed 
its HS Schedule of concessions from HS96 to HS12, and we are currently working on the HS17 
transposition. We believe th ese efforts bring certainty and predictability regarding our bound rates 
to our trading partners. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Secretariat for their 
assistance throughout this process.  
2.14.   Our efforts regarding transparency at the WTO al so extend to our notification obligations. 
During the period under review, Israel has provided over 500 WTO notifications on a range of topics 
including our complete record on agriculture and anti -dumping semi -annual notifications, as well as 
our impressiv e number of TBT notifications through our focal point, to name just a few. Additionally, 
it is worth noting our recent notifications on Rules of Origin, STEs, and Subsidies. Although we have 
made great strides on this front, we are aware there is still roo m for improvement. In that regard, 
this TPR exercise has made us reflect on areas where we can improve our notification procedures, 
and we are working towards making the necessary changes.  
2.15.   Our goal to reduce the cost of living in Israel has also led us to look at other aspects, such as 
competition policy. Since the last TPR, the Israel Antitrust Authority (IAA) has been granted 
additional powers which include higher monetary penalties for competition law infringements as well 
as potential imprisonment for a ntitrust offenders. Since our last TPR, new laws such as the Promotion 
of Competition and Reduction of Concentration Law, and the Promotion of Competition in the Food 
Sector Law have been enacted, in order to combat the centralization in some sectors of th e Israeli 
economy.  
2.16.   Another area worth noting is standards and regulations. Israel has been working hard to align 
its technical standards to international ones. Additionally, in October 2014, a resolution on 
Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) was adopted ai ming at reducing unnecessary regulatory 
burden and creating the adequate balance between vital governmental intervention and space for 
market forces to operate. We are only at the beginning of implementing this new tool, but we believe 
it will prove effect ive.  
2.17.   I would be remiss if I did not mention an area that we feel is synonymous with Israel, and 
that is innovation. In the period since the last review, Israel has maintained its strong position in 
innovation — reflected in Israel's total expenditure on R &D as share of the GDP standing at 4.3% 
for civilian R&D, venture capital availability, number of patents per capita and quality of research 
institutions, to mention just a few parameters. These parameters are the result of a self -reinforcing 
innovation ec o-system that helps create a business environment that is conducive to 
entrepreneurship and favours risk -taking. This could not be reached without a strong IP regime. This 
has put Israel in a leading position in the High -Tech sector – a sector that in 2017  accounted for 
roughly 11% of the total employment in Israel, while the High -Tech portion of Israel's industrial 
exports, including services, was 50%. In 2017, there were around 5,000 start -ups in Israel (and we 
are only 9 million people country), and over  300 foreign Multinational Corporations have trusted 
Israel to set up their R&D centers.  
2.18.   As part of our innovative ecosystem, Israel has introduced necessary changes to its 
infrastructure as well. Since our last TPR, Israel established the "Israel Innovati on Authority" (IIA). 
Under this new agency there are several dedicated innovation divisions that administer programmes 
targeted at start -ups, R&D financing, technological infrastructure improvement and international 
collaboration in R&D, to name just a few . WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  2.19.   All this creativity needs stable markets. Therefore, Israel's trade policy is first and foremost 
outward looking. Israel is a small island -like economy dependent on a level playing field in 
international trade. It is highly important for Israel to be abl e to rely on a strong, stable, rules -based 
trading environment. This means that for Israel, multilateral agreements are a priority. A good 
example is the Trade Facilitation Agreement, for which Israel notified the totality of its obligations 
under Category  A. In addition, Israel sees merit and value in pursuing its interests through joint 
initiatives with those who want to take part in aiming at improving and updating international trade 
rules, where needed, and hopefully taking forward WTO negotiations. Fo r Israel, some of these 
efforts have been reflected in the revised GPA and the still pending TiSA. Looking forward, we see 
great potential for some similar initiatives, namely the ones stemming from the joint statements 
during MC11, which include areas suc h as domestic regulation, MSMEs and e -commerce.  
2.20.   In parallel, Israel has always been a great believer in free trade agreements as a tool for trade 
growth. We have implemented this strategy through our recently concluded FTA's with Colombia, 
Panama and the FTA update with Canada. These efforts will continue as we are currently looking at 
new initiatives to expand our market access to other countries through either multilateral or bilateral 
agreements which, at the moment, include FTA negotiations with China,  Korea, India, Ukraine, 
Viet Nam and the Eurasian Economic Union.  
2.21.   I cannot conclude without recognizing that there are some areas in the WTO that may need 
to be improved or updated in order to enhance the effective and efficient functioning of this 
Organiz ation. Some Members have already identified some of these areas and a few proposals have 
been tabled, such as the one relating to transparency function of the WTO through improvements 
to the notification system. Israel is open to discussing these, as well as other proposals that may be 
brought up. We need to continue our work on this front as well as in other fronts, such as the 
Appellate Body.  
2.22.   One area worth noting which works well, is the regular committees, where we believe there 
is room to further util ize them to their full potential. The Committees can provide solutions to some 
concerns before they escalate into a dispute, and I say this with confidence because Israel has 
benefited from this function. Israel believes this area can benefit from further thought and some 
specific proposals in order to improve its functioning.  
2.23.   On a personal note, coming here for the second time for Israel's TPR and having followed the 
work of this Organization for many years, I believe we should always remember how valuabl e the 
World Trade Organization is and how important it is to ensure its well -functioning.  
2.24.   I hope the exchange of information and views with other Members on issues related to Israel's 
trade policy over the next couple of days will serve that end. We stand ready to respond to questions 
and comments from Members. I thank you Mr. Chairman.  
  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  3  STATEMENT BY THE DIS CUSSANT  
3.1.  Mr. Chairman, H.E. Ambassador Eloi Laourou (Benin), Mr. Ohad Cohen, Trade Commissioner, 
(Head of the delegation of Israel), H.E. Ambassador Avi va Raz Shechter, distinguished colleagues.  
3.2.  I would like to warmly welcome the delegation of Israel. It is an honour for me to have been 
distinguished to be the discussant for Israel's fifth Trade Policy Review.  
Introduction  
3.3.  Since its last review, Israel has outstandingly carried on the path of steady growth and 
economic reform, in spite of challenges brought on by particular geographical conditions, a general 
lack of natural resources, that was alluded to in Mr. Cohen's intervention, and a complex regiona l 
and international economic and political environment.  
3.4.  Without doubt, Israel understands the importance of international trade, particularly its 
contribution to sustainable development. Its modern market economy with a thriving and innovative 
high-technol ogy sector has benefited from a faithful implementation of overall sound macroeconomic 
and trade policies, the latter based on multilateral trading rules.  
3.5.  As we have witnessed from previous reviews, Israel's trade policy has not developed in a 
vacuum nor h as it resulted from an undiscriminating deployment of its policy space. In simple words, 
playing largely by the WTO rules, and relying largely on development -oriented domestic policies, 
has allowed Israel to create a solid framework that fosters economic d evelopment and provides 
predictability to national and foreigners alike.  
3.6.  Israel's high regard for trade policy as a complementary tool for development and as part of a 
wider solution for social challenges was tested seven years ago, when faced with social unrest due 
to high cost of living. The Government listened to the concerns of its citizens, appointed a committee 
to analyse socioeconomic problems, and followed their recommendations and implemented changes. 
Through this collaborative process they were ab le to pin point where trade could effectively address 
those concerns, which led to market -opening measures, reducing prices as a result of more 
competition, and boosting innovation and employment by having only a targeted use of subsidies.  
3.7.  In the period un der review, Israel reduced tariffs, opened unilateral tariff quotas, and adopted 
measures to enhance competition in several services sectors. Additionally, reforms in certain key 
areas, such as telecommunications, financial services, health and innovation,  which are aimed at 
providing competitiveness, are still ongoing.  
3.8.  Yet, there are areas of opportunity for Israel, where more could be done, and that I'll discuss 
as part of my intervention today.  
Economic environment  
3.9.  During the review period, Israel economy continued to show remarkable achievements, 
growing in average 3.3% per year since 2012, with a GDP per capita that has not stopped growing 
in years. It increased by 25% since the last TPR and now is about to reach U S$40,000, which places 
Israel as a high -income country. It has maintained a good position or moved up in many indicators 
and rankings. It has gone from being the 48th freest economy in 2012 to the 31st in 2018, according 
to the Economic Freedom Index of th e Heritage Foundation.  
3.10.   According to the OECD, the standard of living has continued to improve, and the Israeli 
population is generally more satisfied with their lives than residents from most other OECD countries.  
3.11.   Other indicators show that economic poli cy has succeeded in many other aspects, such as:  
• Keeping the inflation well below 3%;  
• Reducing public debt from 68% to 62% of the GDP;  
• Achieving the historical unemployment rate of 4.2% in 2017;  
• Increasing its private consumption rate by 6% in 2016.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  3.12.   Howev er, since its last TPR review, Israel has also lost some places both in the 2018 World 
Bank's ease of doing business and the 2016 United Nations' Human Development Index, and now 
ranks 54th and 19th, respectively. This, I am sure, will deserve deep reflect ion within the 
Government of Israel in terms of identifying areas of opportunities to stay competitive, and in 
continuously improving the wellbeing of its society.  
Investment and innovation  
3.13.   Despite not having a foreign investment legislation, the Israeli l egal system protects the right 
of both foreign and domestic entities to establish and own business enterprises, as well as the right 
to engage in remunerative activity. Beyond some limitation on foreign investment in certain sectors 
- such as international  fixed telecommunications services, maritime transport and energy - the 
Government encourages and supports the inflow of foreign capital.  
3.14.   Israel's discovery and exploitation of natural gas a few years ago has opened up opportunities 
for foreign investment  and has unquestionably had a positive impact in its economic performance 
and will surely continue to spur growth with its own supply to its internal market.  
3.15.   Special mention deserves the fact that Israel has largely fostered innovation and research 
and dev elopment activities in a range of sectors like industrial manufactures, computing, national 
security, health, water and agriculture; thus, it is not surprising that the main recipients of foreign 
and domestic investment have strong links to these activitie s, and that there has developed a strong 
connection between R&D activities and competitive export sectors in the economy.  
3.16.   Indeed, Israel relies on a very strong system of protection of intellectual property rights, on 
a robust respect and enforcement of th e rule of law and on a very interesting and dynamic scheme 
aimed to boost innovation and technology development, whose main features could be summarized 
as follows:  
• An expenditure on Research and Development of 4.3% of the GDP, which ranks among the 
highe st in the world.  
• Numerous programmes, some of them addressing poverty, like the Design Product 
Programme aimed to support manufacturers employing up to 100 employees in factories 
located in disadvantaged areas.  
• Incubators of small enterprises that receive  grants up to the 85% of approved innovation and 
development expenses.  
3.17.   All these programmes and its implementation may explain why foreigners are willing to invest 
their capital in Israel, while protected by Bilateral Investment Treaties and Free Trade Agr eements 
that cover intellectual property rights within their legal definition of investment. It is true that not 
all programmes have been as successful as they were conceived, and some bottlenecks have 
emerged during the process, but the Israeli economy se ems to be dynamic in a manner that it 
manages to adapt to the changing circumstances and grasp the opportunities as they come.  
3.18.   In July 2015, the Government set up the Innovation Authority which leads the innovation 
system of the country and is a more modern version of the Office of the Chief Scientist. Furthermore, 
its Intellectual Property office recruited more patent and trade mark's examiners to deal faster and 
more efficiently with the increasing applications.  
3.19.   That said, Members still have question s regarding the lack of a foreign investment law and 
the further liberalization of the investment regime to promote competition. This is an area where 
Israel may want to use the opportunity of their TPR to address such questions.  
Compliance and participati on in the WTO:  
3.20.   On the compliance and participation in the WTO, Israel's regard for the multilateral trading 
system is evident in its generally good record of compliance with WTO commitments and 
transparency obligations, as well as with its active participa tion in multilateral negotiations and in 
plurilateral initiatives and agreements, like the Government Procurement Agreement, the 
Information Technology Agreement and the negotiations on the Environmental Goods Agreement.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  3.21.   During the review period, it notif ied its modified schedule of commitments in accordance to 
the Nairobi Decision on export competition and ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement, putting all 
the provisions of Section I under the Category A.  
3.22.   However, questions have been raised regarding the compliance with some WTO 
commitments, particularly in agriculture and bound tariffs, as we will discuss shortly.  
Market access  
3.23.   During the period under review, 67% of the tariff lines were duty -free. The average MFN 
applied rate was reduced to 5.2% thr ough unilateral liberalization, almost 15 percentage points 
below the average bound rate.  
3.24.   Israel has a system of unilateral tariff quotas (TRQs). Some Members showed interest in 
knowing more details on the operation of those TRQs, and again, this trade po licy review could 
present an opportunity to delve deeper into this issue.  
Agriculture  
3.25.   Despite the fact that geography and weather elements are not conducive for agricultural 
production, Israel has a highly developed industry and is a leader in agricultural  technologies and 
innovation. With its unique characteristic of having mostly state -owned land and resources, and a 
cooperative community production system, it has managed to harness research and development, 
knowledge and technological progress to create success stories in agriculture. Although Israel is a 
net-food importer, it has managed to expand agricultural output.  
3.26.   The Government has been able to achieve this with a mix of trade policies. In the period under 
review, Israel granted and notified export subsidies. In accordance with the 2015 Nairobi 
Declaration, it has committed to their elimination by the 1st of January 2023 and reflected this in its 
revised schedule.  
3.27.   In addition, the Government reduced the applied MFN tariff rate to agricultural product s from 
a 27.7% in 2012 to 19.8% in 2017, but protection remains high in comparison to non -agricultural 
products, with some products having particularly high level of protection, such as dairy products 
with average duties of 65.7%, an issue which Members ha ve highlighted in past occasions. There 
are areas of opportunity to continue the positive steps by undertaking additional liberalization in this 
area. 
3.28.   Domestic support programmes maintained by Israel tend to fall in the trade distorting 
category and are co ncentrated in some products. During the review period, Israel's support 
surpassed its commitment levels according to the notifications presented to the Committee on 
Agriculture in milk and eggs from 2011 to 2014, raising concerns from some WTO Members. Aga in, 
this can be another area worth looking into during this TPR discussions.  
Trade facilitation  
3.29.   Customs are interconnected by an automated system; there is a fully operational single 
window, and an authorized economic operators' programme in force, as well  as mutual recognition 
agreements with Canada, China, the United States, Korea and Chinese Taipei.  
Trade in services  
3.30.   Services are an extremely important component of the Israeli economy, they represent almost 
85% of the GDP. To cement its condition of net exporter of services, Israel has undergone important 
reforms to foster competition and improve efficiency, particularly in the financial services sector. It 
accepted the Fourth and Fifth Protocols of the GATS, which deal with telecommunications and 
financi al services, respectively.  
3.31.   The financial system is robust, due to the fact that banks comply with the capital objectives, 
and regulations make them not so exposed to financial problems. On the other hand, the two largest 
groups have almost 60% of total ban k assets and there have been no new entrants in almost half a WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  century. In the insurance sector, the landscape is pretty similar, with five top insurers controlling 
the 94% of the life insurance market and 57% of the non -life. Even though foreigners are all owed 
to enter into the Israeli banking markets, four foreign banks held less than 2% of bank assets last 
year. 
3.32.   The telecommunications sector has benefited from liberalization and further reform, which 
has translated into better conditions for its consumers . Last year, the penetration rate for mobile 
telephone services reached 120%. In 2014, Israel issued its policy of shared use of networks and 
one year thereafter granted some licenses to suppliers of international mobile 4G (Generation) 
services. In additi on, as part of the initiative, "Digital Israel", an advanced fiber -optic-broadband 
infrastructure is expected to be installed and to improve Internet speed for households and 
businesses up to one thousand megabytes per second. This will certainly contribut e to keep Israeli 
traders always competitive in an increasingly digital environment and its population always ready to 
grasp the opportunities provided by e -commerce, in particular, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution, 
in general.  
Antitrust and environmen t reforms  
3.33.   The internal market of Israel is relatively small but faces high concentration in some sectors 
such as the food industry, electricity, financial services, cement, rail and see ports. The relatively 
small population puts some difficulties to its A ntitrust Authority, but some years ago the Knesset 
passed a number of pieces of legislation, mainly the Restrictive Trade Practices Law, the Promotion 
of Competition and Reduction of Concentration Law and the Promotion of Competition in the Food 
Sector Law . Furthermore, under the amended law, Israel will limit the use of pyramidal control 
structures, which are particularly widespread and complex and have allowed a handful number of 
business groups to control a large proportion of the economy.  
3.34.   Israel has al so taken some measures to exploit its few water sources in a sustainable way, 
which can be taken as an example by other Members. This system permits a rational use and saving 
of water for human consumption while keeping enough water to meet its agriculture  and industrial 
needs.  
3.35.   On a wider perspective for environmental issues, the Paris Agreement on Climate Change 
poses more challenges for Israel. The country established the target to increase the share of 
renewable energy production to 10% by 2020 and to 1 7% by 2030. So far, it has managed to 
increase it by 3% last year, and one could reflect if the boom in the natural gas industry has had 
the result of discouraging investments in renewable energies.  
Policy recommandations  
3.36.   Notwithstanding the numerous achi evements, there remain some areas where additional 
trade policy measures could contribute to enhancing the business environment in Israel:  
• Israel has bound about the 75% of its tariff lines; certainly, a higher level would be desirable, 
given the predictability that it could bring to exporters from other countries.  
• Some import tariffs remain high, for example 560% for dates, 146% for fish products, 65% 
for dairy products, 36% for animals, 22% for textiles, almost 17 for certain minerals and so 
on.  
• Moreover, the analysis by the Secretariat has identified applied import tariffs that exceed their 
bound limits for 18 tariff lines. This situation turns more serious for some products, such as 
some machine parts and electronic devices, which have a bound tariff rate of 0% ad valorem  
and an applied one of 12%.  
• There is a tax, best known as TAMA, which approaches the declared value of imports to local 
wholesale prices, and whose effect is similar to a surcharge on imports. Given the increasing 
per capita GD P and appreciation of the shekel, this could undermine its efforts of promoting 
more competition in the domestic market.  
• Even though Israel has fully implemented the Trade Facilitation Agreement, it went from being 
ranked in the 10th place to the 60th dur ing the period under review, regarding the category 
of cross border trade of the Doing Business Index of the World Bank, because cost and time 
for importing and exporting is still high and long in comparison to other countries.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  • The same World Bank's Doing Business indicator shows that Israel fell from rank 59 to 99 in 
paying taxes during the last six years. While the Heritage Foundation highlights that Israel's 
citizens and companies face heavy tax burdens.  
• On transparency, some notifications are still pend ing, like those of the Committee on Import 
Licensing and the transparency notifications under articles 1.4, 10.4.3, 10.6.2 and 12.2.2 of 
the Trade Facilitation Agreement. Israel presented about 450 TBT notifications but none to 
the SPS Committee during the  period under review. Some Members wonder on why this is 
happening and whether Israel is submitting its SPS notifications to the TBT Committee instead.  
3.37.   I believe that Israel can take appropriate steps to tackle the above -mentioned opportunity 
areas, using  to the extent possible trade policy responses as it has done in the past.  
Closing remarks  
3.38.   I have nothing more, Mr. Chairman, but to congratulate Israel on all it has accomplished to 
date, and encourage its Government to continue with reforms that would en sure that the country 
can harness the positive effects of technological advancements and their achievements in trade in 
services without leaving behind the population depending on manufacturing and agriculture sectors.  
3.39.   I hope that through the detailed rev iew of Israel's trade policies, we can all draw positive 
experiences and areas of attention that the country and the membership could focus on, so as to 
contribute to building a stronger multilateral trading system.  
3.40.   I wish Israel success in tackling the c hallenges to come and encourage it to work in the 
windows of opportunity that the Members, themselves, have identified in this review, and I hope 
that this review elicits a substantive debate, and wish Israel a very successful trade policy review. 
Thank yo u. 
  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4  STATEMENTS BY MEMBER S 
MÉXICO  
Situación económica en general  
4.1.  Israel es un excelente ejemplo de disciplina y buena implementación de políticas económicas. 
Se caracteriza por ser una economía de libre mercado y orientada a la exportación de bienes y 
servicios de alta tecnología, resultado de sus altos niveles de gasto  en investigación y desarrollo, el 
cual asciende a más del 4% de su PIB, valga decir, el nivel más elevado del mundo.  
4.2.  Durante el periodo de análisis, Israel se caracterizó por contar con sólidas cifras 
macroeconómicas. Entre otras, la inflación, es decir,  las estimaciones oficiales oscilaban con 
crecimientos por debajo del 3%, pero también la tasa de desempleo que ha logrado situarse en 
niveles del 4% en 2017. Asimismo, la deuda pública como porcentaje del PIB se redujo hasta llegar 
al 61% en 2017 y su PIB  per cápita es de los más altos, con importantes tasas de crecimiento, que 
lo han ubicado en los 40 mil dólares EE.UU. en 2017.  
4.3.  En cuanto al desempeño del comercio internacional de bienes, durante el periodo de examen 
se redujo en 9%, dando como resultado, a pesar del buen desempeño de las exportaciones de 
servicios, que la aportación del comercio total al PIB disminuyera de 72 al 57%.  
Acceso a los mercados  
4.4.  Como mencioné, Israel es una economía con vocación a los mercados abiertos, casi el 85% de 
sus fracciones cuentan con aranceles menores a 10% y de ellos el 67% están libres de derechos. 
Esto da como resultado que el promedio del  arancel NMF aplicado actualmente sea del 5,2%.  
4.5.  Sin embargo, a pesar de lo anterior, subsisten algunas áreas de oportunidad, como:  
• Poder reducir los picos arancelarios que llegan hasta el 560% para algunos productos 
agrícolas.  
• El impuesto TAMA, el cual a proxima el valor declarado de las importaciones a los precios 
locales de venta al por mayor, cuyo efecto podría ser similar al de un recargo a la importación.  
• El 25% de las líneas arancelarias siguen sin consolidar, lo que puede generar cierto grado de 
incertidumbre entre los actores comerciales.  
• 18 líneas arancelarias que superaron los límites consolidados, y cuya superación incluso fuera 
por 12 puntos porcentuales.  
Mejoras legislativas  
4.6.  Por otra parte, mi delegación quisiera felicitar a Israel por las ini ciativas legislativas para 
promover la productividad de su sector privado y mejorar el bienestar de su población, entre otras:  
• Las encaminadas a sustituir las normas israelíes por normas internacionales y aquellas 
iniciativas para revisar todos los reglame ntos técnicos antes de agosto de 2019.  
• Las mejoras al régimen de competencia, como la que permite a la Autoridad Antimonopolio 
imponer sanciones pecuniarias.  
• También es importante resaltar la puesta en marcha en 2014 de un programa de privatización 
de empr esas de propiedad estatal, en particular, los puertos y el servicio postal. Asimismo, se 
incluía la privatización parcial de otras empresas de electricidad y agua.  
Relación bilateral  
4.7.  En cuanto a la relación bilateral, a partir de la entrada en vigor de nue stro Tratado de Libre 
Comercio hace casi 20 años, México e Israel hemos venido acrecentando nuestros lazos comerciales 
y los flujos de comercio de forma sostenida en años recientes. La aportación de Israel a la 
competitividad mundial de México se ha dado d e manera estratégica con productos de alta tecnología 
en ciertos sectores importantes para nuestro país como la agricultura y las telecomunicaciones.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  Cierre  
4.8.  En resumen, quisiera felicitar a Israel por el buen manejo de sus políticas económicas, lo que, 
sin duda, ha contribuido de manera significativa a mejorar el nivel de vida de su población. 
Agradecemos a Israel las respuestas a las preguntas formuladas por mi delegación y le deseamos 
mucho éxito en el presente Examen.  
COLOMBIA  
4.9.  Seis años después del último Examen de política comercial realizado por Israel, resaltamos el 
compromiso de ese país con el sistema multilateral de Comercio, así como su rol activo en las 
negociaciones y en los trabajos de los órganos regulares. Nuestros p aíses comparten el objetivo de 
apoyar un sistema multilateral transparente, robusto y basado en reglas, que debe fortalecerse a 
pesar de las circunstancias coyunturales que puedan presentarse.  
4.10.   Las tasas de crecimiento económico promedio de 3,3% anual de I srael, impulsadas por los 
crecientes flujos comerciales, la inversión interna y el consumo privado, reflejan una economía sólida 
y una base productiva diversificada, que se ha especializado en la producción de bienes y servicios 
de alta tecnología.  
4.11.   Es particularmente atractivo el modelo israelí de innovación, sustentado en un gasto público 
de más del 4,3% del PIB en las áreas de innovación y desarrollo. Este porcentaje, el más alto del 
mundo, facilita incentivos y beneficios a los agentes económicos que invierten en sectores 
priorizados que han sido determinantes en el crecimiento y desarrollo económico del país.  
4.12.   Sobresale el rol central que tiene el sector de servicios en la economía y comercio exterior de 
Israel. Las inversiones gubernamentales y l as reformas adoptadas durante el periodo de examen en 
el ámbito regulatorio, régimen de competencia y protección a la propiedad intelectual, se han visto 
reflejadas en el liderazgo de las exportaciones de servicios informáticos y de investigación con un 
sector privado muy dinámico e innovador.  
4.13.   En cuanto a la política arancelaria, reconocemos la reducción de los aranceles aplicados a 
ciertos productos como aparatos eléctricos, textiles y prendas de vestir y algunos productos 
agropecuarios como carnes y queso s. No obstante, como lo anota el informe de la Secretaría, llama 
la atención que la estructura arancelaria sigue siendo dispersa y compleja, con la aplicación de 
aranceles compuestos y mixtos que dificultan los flujos comerciales, en particular en el secto r 
agropecuario. Además, es motivo de inquietud que varios productos del ámbito industrial tienen 
aranceles NMF aplicados que superan las tarifas consolidadas y que se mantiene un esquema de 
prohibiciones a la importación y de licencias no automáticas de im portación sobre un numero amplio 
de productos.  
4.14.   El comercio entre Colombia e Israel ha tenido un desempeño dinámico, registrando en 2017 
un superávit de 178 millones de dólares EE.UU. para Colombia. Además de las exportaciones de 
carbón, café y esmeraldas se destacan las ventas de productos manufacturados como partes para 
aviones y helicópteros y láminas de plástico.  
4.15.   Confiamos en que la próxima entrada en vigor del Acuerdo de Libre Comercio suscrito entre 
los dos países favorecerá el fortalecimiento de las  relaciones bilaterales de comercio e inversión, 
siendo los sectores de innovación y alta tecnología de gran interés para Colombia.  
4.16.   A partir de los informes preparados para el presente examen, Colombia presentó preguntas 
a Israel sobre algunos aspectos que  consideramos de interés dentro de sus políticas económicas y 
comerciales, como es el caso de los instrumentos para promover la innovación y la productividad, 
las zonas industriales calificadas, así como los instrumentos para la atracción de inversión 
extranjera. También consultamos acerca de los mecanismos de protección de la propiedad intelectual 
y sobre las acciones para enfrentar el comercio ilícito.  Agradecemos las respuestas de la delegación 
de Israel, las cuales revisaremos en detalle.  
4.17.   Finalizamos esta intervención deseándole a Israel y a su delegación un exitoso examen de 
sus políticas comerciales, así como agradeciendo a equipo en Ginebra, encabezado por la WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  Embajadora Aviva Raz Scechter, por las excelentes relaciones de trabajo y cooperación entre  
nuestras dos Misiones.  
CHINA  
4.18.   We are pleased to see that Israel has achieved robust economic performance with an average 
growth rate at 3.3% during the period under review. This is attributed to the effective 
macroeconomic policy, substantial structural re forms, trade liberalization and innovation. We believe 
that Israel will maintain the growth momentum with further reforms, trade liberalization, and 
actively integration into the global economy.  
4.19.   International trade has been an engine for economic growth of  Israel, which is an 
export -oriented economy specializing in high -tech products and services. Over 22% of Israel's 
industrial exports in 2015 were high -tech products from the machinery, pharmaceutical and 
electronics industries. In particular, we commend I srael's effort in trade liberalization and eliminating 
tariffs on more than 1,300 tariff lines on many consumer goods, with the average applied MFN tariff 
rate reduced from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018.  
4.20.   As a founding member of the WTO, Israel has been stro ngly supporting and upholding the 
fundamental principles and norms of the multilateral trading system.  Israel has actively participated 
in all activities in the WTO. We note that Israel has joined the revised Information Technology 
Agreement, the revised Government Procurement Agreement, accepted the TRIPS amendment and 
the Trade Facilitation Agreement, submitting a notification regarding Category A commitments, and 
at MC11, signed Joint Statements on E -commerce, MSMEs, and Domestic Regulation.  
4.21.   Recent yea rs have seen rapid growth of China -Israel bilateral economic and trade cooperation. 
China is currently Israel's largest trading partner in Asia and third largest trading partner in the 
world. In 2017, the bilateral trade in goods reached US$13.2 billion, i ncreased by 15.6% annually. 
China's imports from Israel are mainly integrated circuits, medical equipment and diamonds, while 
China's exports to Israel are mainly mechanical and electrical products, clothing and textiles, and 
furniture.  
4.22.   By 2016, China has invested in Israel US$510 million in total, mostly in the areas of chemical, 
food, healthcare and IT industry, while Israel has invested in China US$380 million, mainly in the 
areas of semiconductor, telecoms equipment, IT service and pharmaceutical indust ry. 
4.23.   To better understand the latest development of Israel's trade policy, we have submitted some 
written questions in areas of agriculture ，customs procedures, trade facilitation and investment.  We 
appreciate the replies provided by Israel to our questions  which we would duly study.  
4.24.   In 2016, China and Israel started FTA negotiations.  So far, four rounds have been held with 
positive progress. We expect to sign a FTA at an earlier date. In 2017, China established an 
innovative comprehensive partnership with Israel.  China will further promote cooperation with Israel 
through the Belt and Road Initiative. This November, we will hold the first China International Import 
Expo in Shanghai and Israel has confirmed to join us. We readily welcome more Israel enterpri ses 
and products to China.  
4.25.   Currently, the WTO is facing systemic challenges that have to be dealt with the entire 
Membership. China would work with Israel and other Members to uphold the fundamental principles 
of this Organization, resist unilateralism and  protectionism, and collectively safeguard the rule -based 
multilateral trading system.  
4.26.   To conclude, I would wish this Review a complete success.  
BRAZIL  
4.27.   Israel is a particularly thriving economy, with a GDP per capita equivalent to many developed 
Members. N otwithstanding the sharp decline of the ratio of trade in goods and services to GDP since 
Israel's last Trade Policy Review – from 72% to 57% – trade figures still indicate the country's deep 
integration to international trade and investment flows, with sp ecial emphasis on high -tech goods 
and services.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.28.   Israel's active role in the WTO as well as its firm support to the rules -based multilateral trading 
system has not prevented it from developing an extensive network of free trade agreements with 
partners arou nd the world. Particularly, Israel was the first country outside Latin America to have a 
Free Trade Agreement with MERCOSUR. The MERCOSUR -Israel Agreement entered into force in 
Brazil in 2010.  
4.29.   In the last decade, Israel was among the six main Brazilian tra ding partners in the Middle 
East, with significant deficits for Brazil. In 2013, bilateral trade reached its highest volume, at 
US$1.57 billion. In 2017, however, trade flows decreased to US$1.35 billion. Brazilian exports 
reached US$466 million, an increa se of 9.7% compared to 2016, and exports from Israel to Brazil 
grew 27.3%, reaching US$885.3 million.  
4.30.   Thus, the potential for deepening our commercial ties is significant and new business 
opportunities can be explored. As for Brazilian exports to Israel, the fact that only around 0.5% of 
Israel's imports are originated in Brazil suggests untapped potential for improvement. Frozen beef 
leads the list of products most exported by Brazil to Israel in 2017, with US$86.2 million. Next are 
sugar and corn, repres enting each 11% of total exports. Brazil imports many Israeli products and 
technologies that integrate into our agribusiness cluster, such as pesticides, fertilizers, chemicals 
and drip irrigation know -how, and also medicaments and medical instruments.  
4.31.   On a less positive note, domestic support disbursements are a concern, especially regarding 
milk and eggs, where support exceeded not only the "de minimis" level of 10% for the period 
2011-2016 but also the AMS limit of US$568.98 million between 2011 and 2014 , although 
notifications for 2015 and 2016, however, show that total AMS disbursements went back below the 
overall AMS limit. While average applied MFN tariff on non -agricultural products is relatively low 
(3%, compared with 4.2% in 2012), tariffs on agric ultural goods averaging 19.1% are still high. 
Dairy products, moreover, show a high average of 65.6%. Many agricultural tariffs comprise specific, 
compound or mixed duties. We also note that tariffs on fish and fishery products reached 146.3%.  
4.32.   As regards i nvestments, many Israeli companies have been active in Brazil for a long time. 
There were 85 Israeli companies in Brazil in 2015 and direct investment amounted to US$456 million 
in 2016. 8% of investments went into the agricultural sector, 37% into industr ial areas (beverages 
and automotive sector, for example) and 55% in services (22% in financial services).  
4.33.   High-level visits between Brazil and Israel have been a constant feature in our positive 
bilateral relations. In February 2018, Brazil's Minister of F oreign Affairs visited Israel in the context 
of his first tour of the Middle East. He met Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Rivlin.  
4.34.   Brazil continues to follow with interest domestic developments in Israel's trade policy. We 
have submitted some questions for which answers would be highly appreciated.  
4.35.   Let me conclude by wishing Israel a very successful Trade Policy Review.  
EUROPEAN  UNION  
4.36.   The EU would like to start by highlighting the good progress of the Israeli economy during the 
period under rev iew as showed by its robust GDP growth since 2012, with a yearly average of 3.3% 
– a significant result for a developed OECD economy. This was accompanied by the improvement of 
several important indicators, starting with unemployment (down from 6.9% in 201 2 to 4.2% in 
2017) and continuing with good financial results in terms of a decreasing budget deficit and public 
debt. Israeli economy appears in good shape.  
4.37.   We praise the competitiveness of Israel as a host of technological innovation. One of the 
strengt hs of the Israeli economy lies in the technology sector, in which 84% of the investments in 
Research and Development come from business, including more than half of those investments done 
by foreign companies. Also, about 50% of Israel's industrial exports , including services, come from 
the high -tech sector.  
4.38.   We also commend the effort to approximate Israeli regulatory activity to international best 
practices, as shown by the recent amendment to the Standards Law of 1953, and to reduce the WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  regulatory burden  via a new requirement, the Regulatory Impact Assessment. We are expecting 
positive results from those initiatives.  
4.39.   The EU commends Israel for its support to an open and rules -based multilateral trading 
system. It ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement in 2017 and is taking part in some important 
plurilateral agreements, notably the Information Technology Agreement and the Government 
Procurement Agreement.  
4.40.   With reference to our bilateral relationship, the EU is Israel's main trading partner. Our 
bilater al trade in goods increased in the 2012 -2017 period from €29.8 billion to €36.3 billion. The 
composition of this trade is balanced, with similar share of agricultural, fishery and industrial 
products for imports and exports. The overall stock of foreign di rect investments has gone from 
€38.7 billion to €86.8 billion in the same period. During the period 2012 -2017, the EU and Israel 
were consolidating their economic partnership with the signature of an "Open Sky" agreement, which 
is bringing about a consider able increase of air traffic and very significant economic benefits between 
our two sides.  
4.41.   We also would like to underline some issues where we encourage Israel to improve the current 
situation or to pay at least special attention.  
4.42.   First, in its efforts t o improve the regulatory framework in certain sectors, we invite Israel to 
consider the need to open the domestic market to competition. In particular, the EU sees that the 
recently adopted law on nutritional marking and the law on cosmetics, currently und er discussion, 
include deviations from the international best practices and standards that constitute, or may 
constitute, a discriminatory burden on exporters.  
4.43.   Secondly, the EU notices that while the service sector has a preeminent role in the Israeli 
economy, accounting for ca. 80% of its GDP, some sectors see very little activity by international 
operators, like in retail banking, insurance, or construction. Opening up those sectors to competition 
would have a positive impact on the cost of living.  
4.44.   Third, the EU is concerned about Israel's lack of data protection for biological medicines as 
well as its application of restrictive requirements in public procurement which we hope will stop with 
the expiry of the waiver at the end of 2019.  
4.45.   Finally, the EU ap preciates Israel's generally good performance in terms of notifications to the 
WTO (including the recent submission of the notification pursuant to Article XVI:1 of the GATT 1994 
and Article 25 of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures). Ho wever, the EU notes 
that with reference to some notification obligations Israel is lagging behind. We would therefore 
encourage Israel to catch up with its obligations in the areas of import licensing, quantitative 
restrictions and STEs.  
4.46.   Again, on the Tra de Facilitation Agreement, the EU is pleased that Israel is applying all 
provisions (section I) since the entry into force of the Agreement, but should still notify the 
transparency obligations, which will be very helpful to all trade operators.  
4.47.   In conclus ion, the EU encourages Israel to continue its efforts to further facilitate trade and 
to implement the announced plans of reform.  
4.48.   On behalf of the EU, I look forward to a constructive exchange of views during this review 
and I wish the delegation of Israe l the utmost success during its Trade Policy Review.  
COSTA  RICA 
4.49.   Costa Rica se complace en participar en este Examen de Políticas Comerciales de Israel, país 
con el compartimos iniciativas e intereses comunes en la OMC, como la liberalización del comercio 
de servicios, las tecnologías de la información, y los bienes ambientales, así como el impulso al 
comercio electrónico, las micro, pequeñas y medias empresas y al empoderamiento de las mujeres 
de la mano con el comercio.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.50.   El comercio de Costa Rica con Israel  ha crecido a una tasa anual promedio de 3,1% en la 
última década. Las exportaciones han crecido a un promedio anual de 9,3%, mientras que las 
importaciones lo han hecho en un 2,0%, en ese mismo periodo. Es el segundo destino de nuestras 
exportaciones en M edio Oriente. En la última década, la inversión extranjera directa proveniente de 
Israel alcanzó un monto de 53 millones de dólares EE.UU., destinados principalmente al sector de 
servicios e inmobiliario.  
4.51.   En relación con el Examen específicamente, rescatam os en primer lugar la solidez y el 
crecimiento sostenido de la economía israelí, caracterizada por bajas tasas de inflación y desempleo, 
prudente manejo fiscal y un fuerte impulso de su sector de servicios, en particular los servicios de 
alta tecnología y los servicios de investigación y desarrollo.  
4.52.   Tal y como se menciona en los informes que forman parte de este Examen, el gasto que 
destina Israel al rubro de investigación y desarrollo representa un monto superior al 4% del PIB, 
unos de los porcentajes más  altos del mundo. Vemos con mucho interés las iniciativas que ha 
impulsado Israel durante el período de este examen, en particular la creación de la Autoridad de 
Innovación, así como a ostentar un puesto privilegiado en el Índice Mundial de Innovación de l a 
OMPI, en el cual se ubicaron en el puesto número 11 entre 126 países en el 2018.  
4.53.   Aquí me permito hacer una reflexión sobre innovación y emprendimiento. En cuanto avanza 
nuestro entendimiento de la Cuarta Revolución Industrial, hay quienes creemos que el  gran desafío 
en un futuro no muy lejano será el empleo, sobre todo el empleo de personas jóvenes. El aprendizaje 
de las máquinas obliga pensar, además, en aquellos empleos que serán más eficientemente 
realizados por robots. Estas personas, que a nivel glo bal son cientos de millones, tendrán el desafío 
de desarrollar, a corto plazo, una cultura del emprendimiento similar a la que ha logrado desarrollar 
Israel. Sería deseable que el resto del mundo no tuviera que dedicar 70 años, como lo ha hecho 
Israel, a d esarrollar estas capacidades, así que esperamos que la exportación del conocimiento, de 
la técnica, de las mejores prácticas, de la política pública, de la cultura emprendedora y orientada 
hacia la innovación, se convierta en una contribución para el mundo  con sello israelí.   
4.54.   También en tiempos de acción climática, Israel es un país que nació en un entorno ambiental 
más que desafiante en acceso a agua potable, reducida cobertura boscosa y fertilidad de la tierra, 
relativamente baja biodiversidad, y altas t emperaturas durante varios meses del año. Quizás son 
esas circunstancias las que han hecho de Israel un líder en eficiencia agrícola, una transformación 
que debemos realizar los demás países del mundo para que la producción de alimentos no nos cueste 
el planeta.  
4.55.   A pesar de los avances mostrados en los sectores relacionados con los servicios, Israel todavía 
mantiene un sector agrícola altamente protegido por aranceles altos y complejos, ayudas internas y 
subvenciones a la exportación, aunque en este último c aso ya se tiene previsto su eliminación para 
el año 2023.  
4.56.   En el marco de este Examen de políticas comerciales, Costa Rica presentó a Israel algunas 
preguntas relacionadas con sus políticas hacia las fuentes de energías renovables. Quisiera 
agradecer la ate nción que Israel ha otorgado a estas preguntas, y concluir mi intervención 
deseándole muchos éxitos en este Examen de políticas comerciales.  
CANADA  
4.57.   Canada and Israel enjoy a steadfast friendship and strong, growing bilateral relations in many 
areas based o n shared values, including democracy. We also share the belief that international trade 
benefits nations and contributes to global peace, security and prosperity.  
4.58.   Since the Canada -Israel Free Trade Agreement first came into effect over two decades ago, 
the value in two -way merchandise trade has more than tripled, totalling $1.7 billion in 2017. Just a 
few weeks ago, Israel's Minister of Economy and Industry Eli Cohen was in Montreal to sign the 
modernized Canada -Israel Free Trade Agreement. This progressive  agreement includes new 
chapters on gender, small and medium enterprises, labour and environment, as well as a new 
corporate social responsibility article. It demonstrates Canada's and Israel's serious commitment to 
a new, modernized approach to trade, and  to ensuring that the jobs, growth and prosperity 
generated by the global trading system are sustainable, inclusive and innovative.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.59.   In addition to the modernized CIF TA, a number of bilateral agreements support Canada -Israel 
trade relations such as the 201 6 Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation, the 
2017-amended Agreement on Air Transportation, and the 2012 Canada -lsrael Agreement on 
Bilateral Cooperation in Industrial Research and Development. Israel invests heavily in research and 
development an d together we have established a variety of joint -programs for scientific research. 
These types of agreements demonstrate the maturity of Canada -Israel trade relations as well as our 
respective commitment to the ongoing promotion of open markets and libera lized trade and 
investment.  
4.60.   Canada applauds Israel for its steady and vigorous growth in GDP, its current account 
surpluses and steady decrease in unemployment rate during this review period, in addition to its 
efforts to increase competition and efficienc y in some sectors of its economy. With services 
accounting for 80 per cent of its GDP and a focus on innovation, research and development, Israel's 
economy is unmistakably forward -looking, and its durable success will likely require engagement 
from all seg ments of its population.  
4.61.   We welcome Israel's administrative and regulatory reforms regarding imports, commitment 
to eliminate export subsidies for agricultural products as of January 2023, and efforts to adopt 
international standards.  
4.62.   We also commend Israe l for its consistent support for the multilateral trading system, namely 
for its active role in the negotiations of the Trade Facilitation Agreement, the revised Government 
Procurement Agreement, the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement and, m ost 
recently, its endorsement of the Joint Declaration on Trade and Women's Economic Empowerment 
at MC11. We look forward to working with Israel to fully implement the Joint Declaration.  
4.63.   An important characteristic of the multilateral trading system, for b oth exporters and 
importers, is transparency. In this regard, Canada notes Israel's strong history of fulfilling its 
transparency commitments under the Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement, and encourages Israel 
to practice the same under the Sanitary and  Phytosanitary Agreement.  
4.64.   Finally, I would like to wish the delegation every success in carrying out its task and would 
like to convey Canada's appreciation for the opportunity to participate in this review.  
NEW  ZEALAND  
4.65.   New Zealand has an active interest i n Israel's trade and investment policies. We congratulate 
Israel on its commitment to structural reform, unilateral trade liberalisation including the removing 
of tariffs on certain consumer products, and the pursuit of multilateral and bilateral trade 
agreements. It is clear that these efforts have started to generate positive macroeconomic and fiscal 
outcomes. We welcome the improvements in Israel's economic indicators since Israel's 2012 review.  
4.66.   We commend Israel's efforts to increase market access and c ompetition, including through 
the elimination of import duties and the opening of autonomous tariff quotas, which has resulted in 
Israel's average MFN tariff reducing from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018. While these reforms 
included some agricultural product s, we note that Israel's dairy industry remains closely regulated 
and controlled through production quotas, reregulated prices for milk from producers, and regulated 
retail prices for milk and other dairy products. We would encourage further liberalisation  and tariff 
reductions in areas such as dairy, as well as non -agriculture sectors such as fisheries, where tariffs 
are particularly high.  
4.67.   New Zealand also commends Israel's achievements in technological innovation, stemming 
from Israel's strong commitment to Research and Development, its business and research -driven 
approach, and other factors. Israel's investment in innovation has had a positive impact on domestic 
employment and in attracting foreign investment.  
4.68.   New Zealand welcomes Israel's efforts to enc ourage the uptake of renewable energy and its 
established targets under the Paris Agreement for renewable energy use, aiming for 10% by 2020 
and 17% by 2030. Israel's commitment to continuing the "Israel NewTech" programme, which aims 
to support water and renewable energy technologies to find solutions to environmental challenges, 
will play an important role in meeting these targets. Additionally, we encourage Israel to rationalize WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  any inefficient fossil -fuel subsidies that incentivise wasteful consumption so as to avoid 
disadvantaging renewable energy uptake.  
4.69.   In conclusion, the reports by the Government of Israel and the Secretariat illustrate that there 
is a good trajectory of economic reform in Israel that should continue to generate positive trade and 
economic effects. We commend Israel's commitment to ongoing reform for domestic support as well 
as increasing market access for various agricultural products. New Zealand also welcomes the plan 
to move towards minimizing price support and promote the move of  Israel's agriculture to more 
Green Box measures, thus reducing AMS support.  
4.70.   We welcome Israel's commitment to the multilateral trading system and look forward to 
further building our positive trading relationship.  
RUSSIAN  FEDERATION  
4.71.   Israel is an important  trading partner for Russia, second largest in the Middle East after 
Turkey. In 2017 the bilateral turnover increased by more than 14% in comparison to 2016 and 
showed diversified commodity nomenclature. Russia's export reached almost 1.7 billion dollars, and 
our imports from Israel increased to 830 million dollars. The main products of Russia's exports to 
Israel are mineral fuels (39%), precious or semi -precious stones, precious metals (32%), cereals 
(7%). Russia imports from Israel vegetables (22%), elect rical machinery and equipment (13%), 
optical and surgical appliances (8%).  
4.72.   New spheres for further cooperation have enjoyed rapid development, including at the level 
of the Eurasian Economic Union. We are of the view that the FTA between Israel, of the one  part, 
and the Eurasian Economic Union and its Member States, of the other part, that we are currently 
negotiating will become an important cornerstone of our economic relations.  
4.73.   Our bilateral economic and political cooperation stands on a solid level. Rus sian is the third 
language spoken in Israel after Hebrew and Arabic.  
4.74.   We welcomed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Russia 15 times. And his latest visit took 
place just last week, when he held negotiations with President of Russia Vladimir Putin and vis ited 
the semi -final of the World Cup.  
4.75.   The development of bilateral trade and economic relations is facilitated by the Russian -Israeli 
Intergovernmental Commission and Business Councils. Let me give some examples of bilateral 
cooperation. Russia has launche d 9 Israeli sputniks. Israeli company Teva has built a pharmaceutical 
plant in the Russian town of Yaroslavl. Moscow metro constructing company is taking part in the 
construction of Tel Aviv —Jerusalem rail route. Annually 300 thousand of Russian tourists v isit Israel 
and 150 thousand Israelis come to Russia.  
4.76.   Russia is pleased to see Israel's tangible steps in improving its trade policies and practices. 
Much work has been done.  
4.77.   We look forward to further improvements with a view to cultivate a stable and tra nsparent 
regulatory environment for business communities. Getting a clear understanding on new voluntary 
Tariff Rate Quotas applied by Israel seems also important in this regard.  
4.78.   Russia appreciates Israel's significant developments in the area of IPR prote ction and 
encourages Israel to stay at that course.  
4.79.   The Russian Federation would like to thank Israel for providing answers to our advance written 
questions.  
4.80.   We wish our partners from Israel a successful trade review.  
UKRAINE  
4.81.   We highly value the trade part nership with the State of Israel. Ukraine and Israel are now in 
the process of finalizing a comprehensive bilateral free trade agreement. Our broad cooperation in WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  trade, agriculture, investment, energy, tourism etc. reflects the special role Israel plays i n our 
bilateral relationship.  
4.82.   According to the Ukrainian statistics, the trade turnover between Ukraine and Israel in 2017 
amounted to almost US$1.0 billion (13% increase compared to the previous year), with Ukrainian 
export to Israel accounted for more than US$780 million, and imports  from Israel totalled 
US$200  million.   
4.83.   The main import positions from Israel include various chemical products; mineral fuel, oil and 
products of their refining; plastics, polymers; energy equipment, machinery, electric machines and 
pharmaceutical.  
4.84.   We exp ort to Israel cereals; ferrous metals; oil seeds; food industry products; wood etc.  
4.85.   We appreciate the cooperation with Israel across the WTO bodies on different issues of mutual 
interest.  
4.86.   Within this TPR exercise Ukraine has submitted a number of specific  questions and is seeking 
clarification on a range of the following topics:  
• - investment regime;  
• - measures directly affecting imports, import prohibitions, restrictions, and licensing;  
• - export finance, insurance, and guarantees;  
• - sanitary and phytosani tary requirements;  
• - intellectual property rights;  
• - trade in services;  
• - participation in plurilateral initiatives etc.  
4.87.   We would like to express our gratitude for the responses, which we are reviewing carefully.  
4.88.   I am positive that this meeting would be a good opportunity for Members to discuss in greater 
detail the issues of interest to them in the trade policy regime of Israel.  
4.89.   Ukraine wishes the delegation of Israel very successful Trade Policy Review and looks forward 
to further enhancing of our bila teral relations.  
AUSTRALIA  
4.90.   Israel is Australia's 38th largest merchandise trading partner, with over AU$1 billion in goods 
traded in 2017.  
4.91.   In 2017, Israel was Australia's 50th largest export market, with a total value of 
AU$216  million. Live animals were A ustralia's largest export to Israel, valued at over AU$53 million 
in 2017. In this context, we note our concerns at the prospect of an Israeli ban affecting our live 
animal trade, given legislative proposals in Israel to phase out then eliminate the trade.  Other 
prominent exports include plastic plates, sheets and film, and pearls and gems.  
4.92.   Australia was Israel's 21st largest merchandise export destination in 2017. Australia's major 
imports from Israel include the mineral manufactures, pearls and gems and plastic plates, sheets 
and film categories.  
4.93.   In 2016, Australian investment in Israel was AU$807 million and Israeli investment in 
Australia was AU$302 million.  
4.94.   We appreciate Israel's trade policy objectives involve continued integration of the Israeli 
economy into the global trading system and the creation of an attractive climate for investors, 
businesspeople and consumers.  
4.95.   Australia commends Israel for its efforts towards trade liberalisation, including unilateral tariff 
reductions, as a part of its bro ader economic policy agenda.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.96.   An issue that remains of concern, however, is Israel's continued intervention in its agricultural 
sector. This is illustrated by the significant gap between average applied MFN tariffs for 
non-agricultural products of 3% and a gricultural products which average at over 19%. While this 
gap has reduced since Israel's last trade policy review in 2012, it remains significant.  
4.97.   We appreciate Israel's commitment, in line with the Nairobi Ministerial Decision for developing 
country members to eliminate export subsidies by the end of 2022 and look forward to this use of 
subsidies ceasing.   
4.98.   We commend a number of initiatives Israel has undertaken to advance its economy. This 
includes Israel's five -year initiative, which commenced in 2015, to reduce regulatory burden and to 
cut administrative costs; Israel's requirement for mandatory regulatory impact analysis implemented 
in 2016; and  Israel's plan to align of all Israel's technical standards to international standards by 
August 2019. We also would like to acknowledge Israel's acceptance of the Trade Facilitation 
Agreement and its notification of its category A commitments.  
4.99.   We note th at Israel has taken a range of measures since 2012 to address concerns about the 
high cost of living. Our trade in agricultural and other products will help to address these high cost 
of living pressures.  
4.100.   For this Trade Policy Review, we submitted a numbe r of questions in writing. We thank the 
Israeli delegation for the answers we have received, which we will examine further.  
4.101.   Australia looks forward to continuing to work with Israel to advance global trade liberalization 
and on bilateral initiatives to gro w our trade and investment relationship.  
ARGENTINA  
4.102.   La Argentina observa con buenos ojos el crecimiento económico experimentado por Israel 
en los últimos años, impulsado principalmente por el consumo privado y la inversión interna. 
Asimismo, felicitamos por  haber registrado en 2017 un mínimo histórico de desempleo.  
4.103.   Hacemos mención, asimismo, al importante esfuerzo tendiente a la reducción de los 
aranceles, la introducción de contingentes arancelarios autónomos y la adopción de medidas para 
mejorar la compete ncia en varios sectores de la economía, tales como el sector financiero, el sector 
de las telecomunicaciones y el sector del transporte aéreo y marítimo.  
4.104.   En el plano multilateral, nos permitimos subrayar en particular la participación de Israel en 
la OMC. Israel ha aplicado el Acuerdo sobre Tecnología de la Información revisado y el Acuerdo sobre 
Contratación Pública revisado; ha aceptado el Acuerdo sobre Facilitación del Comercio y ha 
presentado una notificación sobre sus compromisos de la categoría A; ha aceptado la enmienda del 
Acuerdo sobre los ADPIC; y, en consonancia con la Decisión Ministerial de Nairobi, presentó una 
notificación en la que indica que dejaría de conceder subvenciones a la exportación de productos 
agropecuarios a partir del 1 0 de ener o de 2023.  
4.105.   En cuanto a la relación bilateral, quisiéramos mencionar que el intercambio comercial 
bilateral representa unos 345,76 millones de dólares EE.UU. Históricamente Argentina mantiene 
superávit comercial con Israel, que en 2017 ascendió a 57,3 millo nes de dólares EE.UU.  
4.106.   Las exportaciones argentinas a Israel (201,5 millones de dólares EE.UU.) representan el 
0.35% de las exportaciones de nuestro país. Para el período enero -febrero 2018 fueron de 
52 millones de dólares EE.UU. Priman, al respecto, las ex portaciones de productos primarios: carne 
bovina deshuesada congelada, que representa el 59,46% del total (201,5 millones de dólares 
EE.UU.), maíz en grano (5,12% del total, 10,3 millones de dólares EE.UU.), carne bovina fresca o 
refrigerada (4,91%, 9,8 mi llones de dólares EE.UU.), maníes (3,64%, 7,3 millones de dólares 
EE.UU.), filetes congelados de merluza (3,50%, 7 millones de dólares EE.UU.), y garbanzos (2,47%, 
4,9 millones de dólares EE.UU.).  
4.107.   Las importaciones argentinas fueron de 144,19 millones de d ólares EE.UU. En ese sentido, 
Israel participa en un 0,22% de las importaciones de nuestro país. Para el período enero -febrero de 
este año sumaron unos 21 millones de dólares EE.UU. Entre los principales productos importados se WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  encuentran: Herbicidas (18,6 5%, 26,8 millones de dólares EE.UU.), aparatos emisores con receptor 
incorporado (8,24%, 11,8 millones de dólares EE.UU.), aparatos para cirugía que operan c/láser 
(4,85%, 6,9 millones de dólares EE.UU.) y medicamentos (6,4 millones de dólares EE.UU.).  
4.108.   Debe destacarse que Israel es un inversor relevante a escala mundial, y ocupó la 36ta 
posición dentro de los principales inversores en el mundo (en 2016), con tendencia al alza, con un 
stock de 102.054 millones de dólares EE.UU., incrementándose 14% respecto al año anterior.  
4.109.   En relación con ello, en 2016 Israel se posicionó como el 31er inversor extranjero en nuestro 
país, con un stock de IED de 109 millones de dólares EE.UU. A excepción de años 2012 y 2016, el 
stock de IED israelí ha crecido desde 2005 (cuand o era de unos 56 millones de dólares EE.UU.). La 
IED israelí se encuentra concentrada en los siguientes sectores: agricultura, ganadería, caza, 
silvicultura y pesca (77%), información y comunicaciones (8,25%), industria manufacturera 
(7,58%) y comercio al por mayor y al por menor (6,14%).  
4.110.   En el marco de la presente reunión no podemos dejar de mencionar el Acuerdo MERCOSUR 
(nuestro bloque comercial) con Israel. Al respecto, cabe recordar que Israel es el primer socio extra 
regional con el cual el MERCOSUR fi rmó un TLC y el único país desarrollado con el que el bloque 
suscribió un acuerdo de esta naturaleza (diciembre 2007, en vigor para Argentina desde septiembre 
de 2011).  
4.111.   El TLC ha tenido un impacto aproximado de 1800 millones de dólares EE.UU. de comercio 
total en los últimos 10 años, con exportaciones concentradas en agroalimentos e importaciones 
concentradas en el sector químico. Al respecto, recordamos que nuestro país desea expandir el 
comercio y las inversiones con Israel, e incrementar el aprovechamien to del acuerdo  
4.112.   Entre los acuerdos bilaterales suscriptos recientemente se destacan un Acuerdo sobre 
Servicios Aéreos, un MOU sobre Servicios Aéreos entre Autoridades Aeronáuticas, un Acuerdo sobre 
Asistencia Mutua en Cuestiones Aduaneras, una Declaración Conjunta para Cooperación en materia 
de Innovaciones Tecnológicas y un Convenio de Cooperación entre la Autoridad de Cooperación 
Industrial Israelí y la Secretaría de Industria de la Argentina.  
4.113.   Finalizando, y al tiempo de reiterar nuestro reconocimiento por esta nueva oportunidad de 
intercambiar elementos de juicio y consideraciones sobre las políticas comerciales de Israel, 
permítanos señalar la relevancia de este ejercicio de transparencia y desear a las autoridades 
israelitas la exitosa conclusión del presente examen.  
REPÚBLICA  DOMINICANA  
4.114.   Felicitamos a Israel, por el excelente desempeño macroeconómico que ha mantenido desde 
el último examen de las políticas comerciales en el 2012, ya que ha mantenido el crecimiento 
económico a una tasa promedio del 3,3% ; con un muy alto nivel del PIB per cápita, el cual alcanzó 
más de 40.000 dólares EE.UU en el 2017, este crecimiento proviene principalmente del consumo 
privado y la inversión interna, y la economía israelí está especializada en bienes y servicios de alta 
tecnología, y en especial en la fabricación de componentes de computadoras, los programas 
informáticos, la tecnología médica y los productos farmacéuticos. El sector de los servicios 
representa el 80% del PIB.  
4.115.   El informe de la Secretaría expresa también qu e la posición exterior del país sigue siendo 
sólida, con un superávit por cuenta corriente, unas reservas abundantes en un contexto de 
apreciación de la moneda y una tasa de desempleo que registró en 2017 un mínimo histórico del 
4,2%.  
4.116.   Observamos con interé s que desde el 2011 se han llevado a cabo reformas importantes 
mediante las cuales se redujeron los aranceles, se introdujeron contingentes arancelarios autónomos 
y se adoptaron medidas para mejorar la competencia en varios sectores, como el sector financi ero, 
el sector de las telecomunicaciones y el transporte aéreo y marítimo. Asimismo, se ha continuado 
con las reformas, y se espera reducir los costos administrativos y las prescripciones reglamentarias 
para las importaciones.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.117.   Felicitamos a Israel por mant ener un régimen arancelario bastante abierto, reduciendo el 
arancel NMF medio aplicado del 7,6% en 2012 al 5,2% en 2018; cerca del 67% del total de las líneas 
arancelarias están exentas de derechos, y solo un 3,7% de ellas están gravadas con un tipo superi or 
al 20%.  
4.118.   Asimismo, consideramos positivo que se han introducido reformas importantes en el régimen 
de competencia para promover la productividad de las empresas, fomentar el crecimiento del PIB y 
mejorar el bienestar de los consumidores. Además, en 2013 se promulgó la Ley de Promoción de la 
Competencia y Reducción de la Concentración.  
4.119.   También es digno de elogiar que Israel cuenta con un sistema de propiedad intelectual bien 
desarrollado y, durante el período objeto de examen, ha seguido invirtiendo en el funcionamiento 
administrativo de los procedimientos de examen de la Oficina de Patentes de Israel y ha continuado 
modernizando sus leyes sobre propiedad intelectual, particularmente en las esferas de las patentes 
y los diseños y modelos.  
4.120.   Finalmente, la Rep ública Dominicana ha presentado algunas preguntas a Israel, relacionados 
con su régimen de inversión, cuyas respuestas estudiaremos con interés, y solo nos queda desear 
a Israel que siga por la senda del progreso y el desarrollo.  
THE SEPARATE  CUSTOMS  TERRI TORY  OF TAIWAN,  PENGHU,  KINMEN  AND  MATSU  
4.121.   Since its last Review in 2012, Israel's economy has grown at an average annual rate of 
3.3%. It is impressive to see its growth in exports of services has been strong, its costs of 
administrative works have been reduced, and the start of natural gas production and the 
establishment of a sovereign wealth fund have made its future even more promising.  
4.122.   We are pleased to note Israel's on -going policy liberalization and commitment to global 
engagement, including the si gning of FTAs. It is equally encouraging to see that Israel has 
implemented both the revised Information Technology Agreement (ITA) and the Government 
Procurement Agreement (GPA), and has accepted the Trade Facilitation Agreement and the TRIPS 
amendment.  
4.123.   We welcome Israel's plan to stop using export subsidies for agricultural products from 2023, 
and we welcome its established targets for renewable energy use, aiming 10% by 2020 and 17% 
by 2030. We believe it's commitment to the "Israel New Tech" programme will help fulfil the targets, 
and we encourage it to rationalize any inefficient fossil -fuel subsidies that could incentivize wasteful 
consumptions.  
4.124.   I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the contributions made by the 
Permanent Mission o f Israel to our collective works here in Geneva, such as promoting the Joint 
Ministerial Initiatives at the recent MC11 in the areas of MSMEs, e -commerce, services domestic 
regulations, as well as "trade and women's empowerment."  
4.125.   Apart from that, we believ e Israel deserves special praise for organizing many Trade Lecture 
Sessions held at the WTO in recent years to discuss key trade issues.  
4.126.   In the agriculture negotiations, because we share the same non -trade concerns such as food 
security, the coexistence of  various forms of agriculture, and the issue of stronger disciplines on 
export restrictions, my delegation enjoys a close partnership with Israel, particularly within the G10 
Group of net food -importing Members.  
4.127.   Bilaterally, the total trade value between u s was over US$1.7 billion last year, which makes 
Israel our 31st largest trading partner. We acknowledge that Israel is renowned for its agricultural 
technologies dealing with extremely arid climate conditions and serious lack of high quality water. 
Our ow n farmers face similar natural constraints, so we are working closely with counterparts in 
Israel on the common challenges we're both facing. We are confident that our cooperation will 
continue to grow closer and become more fruitful in the future.  
4.128.   My dele gation has already submitted written questions to Israel in advance, relating to 
various topics, such as its trade and investment regime, trading arrangements, as well as its trade WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  policies in the electricity sector and on Intellectual Property Rights. We look forward to Israel's replies 
in due course.  
4.129.   I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Asi Yosef, DPR of Israel who is about 
to leave, for his long -time support and friendship. We wish him all the best in his future endeavours.  
4.130.   Finally, w e wish Israel a very constructive and successful Trade Policy Review.  
GUATEMALA  
4.131.   En el marco del presente examen cabe resaltar los esfuerzos realizados por el Gobierno de 
Israel en la realización de reformas normativas que tienen como objetivo el facilitar los 
procedimientos relativos a la competitividad y la diversificación de las importaciones en los diversos 
sectores de productos y servicios.    
4.132.   La iniciativa "Israel Digital" implementada por el gobierno, busca generar el uso de las 
nuevas tecnologías de la información como herramienta útil para el crecimiento económico, así como 
el establecimiento de un gobierno digital que facilite a los ciudadanos el acceso a las actividades 
administrativas de manera eficiente y rápida.  
4.133.   En lo que respecta a las medidas  adoptadas para la implementación del Acuerdo sobre 
Facilitación del Comercio, cabe destacar que Israel ha realizado sus mejores esfuerzos para notificar 
los compromisos que el Acuerdo establece. En virtud de que cuenta con un sistema aduanero 
tecnológicam ente avanzado, facilita las transacciones aduaneras, las cuales se realizan en el menor 
tiempo posible, facilitando el desarrollo de las actividades comerciales.  
4.134.   Israel es parte en el Acuerdo plurilateral de la OMC sobre Contratación Pública (ACP) y fue 
una de las 10 primeras Partes que aceptaron el Acuerdo sobre Contratación Pública revisado que 
entró en vigor el 6 de abril de 2014. Esto favorece a que las empresas extranjeras tengan la 
posibilidad de entrar a procesos de licitación bajo procedimientos y e xcepciones especiales que 
incentivan la inversión.   
4.135.   En materia de propiedad intelectual Israel ha realizado acciones con el fin de mejorar su 
sistema de propiedad intelectual invirtiendo en el funcionamiento administrativo de los 
procedimientos de examen de la Oficina de Patentes de Israel (ILPO), y modernizando sus leyes 
sobre propiedad intelectual, particularmente en las esferas de las patentes y los diseños y modelos. 
Israel reconoce contar con una industria altamente innovadora y competitiva en la que numerosas 
empresas hacen uso de los sistemas de protección de derechos de propiedad intelectual, la 
implementación de medias de observancia de este tipo de derechos hace que la actividad judicial 
sea constante en beneficio de los titulares de derechos de p ropiedad intelectual.  
4.136.   Hoy en día uno de los desafíos importantes en esta materia es el establecer normativas o 
procesos que regulen la actividad en el entorno digital y su relación con los derechos de propiedad 
intelectual.  
4.137.   En lo concerniente a las relac iones bilaterales, para Guatemala Israel, ocupó durante el año 
2017, como socio comercial de las exportaciones la posición número 69 y de las importaciones la 
posición número 41.  
4.138.   Guatemala para Israel, ocupó durante el año 2017, como socio comercial de la s 
exportaciones la posición número 67 y para sus importaciones la posición número 83. Los principales 
productos que Guatemala exporta a Israel por orden de importancia son: Cardamomo, café, frutas 
frescas, secas o congeladas, pimienta, artículos de vestuar io, bulbos, raíces y plantas ornamentales, 
preparados de frutas, azúcares y artículos de confitería y materiales plásticos y sus manufacturas.   
4.139.   Dentro de los principales productos que Guatemala importa de Israel se encuentran: 
materiales plásticos y sus m anufacturas, insecticidas, fungicidas y desinfectantes, aluminio, bulbos, 
raíces y plantas ornamentales, aparatos transmisores y receptores, productos diversos de la 
industria química, instrumental médico, máquinas y aparatos mecánicos para usos electrotéc nicos 
pinturas y preparados de legumbres y hortalizas.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.140.   Israel es para Guatemala un socio inversionista. En el año 2017, invirtió principalmente en 
los siguientes Sectores: electricidad y en la industria manufacturera, y otras actividades varias  
4.141.   Adicionalm ente, es importante destacar los resultados que han conseguido en materia del 
comercio de Servicios los cuales les han llevado en la actualidad a que dicho sector represente casi 
la mitad del PIB y del empleo en su país.  
4.142.   Para concluir, Guatemala desea a Is rael que en el marco de la aplicación de sus políticas 
económicas y comerciales continúen cosechando éxito en cuanto a su crecimiento económico y 
desarrollo.  
4.143.   Agradecemos las respuestas remitidas a las preguntas que planteamos, las cuales 
remitiremos a cap ital para su análisis y comentarios.   
4.144.   Deseamos a la delegación que hoy los representa, la conclusión exitosa de este Examen de 
política comercial.  
UNITED  STATES  
4.145.   During Israel's last TPR in 2012, the Chair noted that Israel's various programmes of 
economic  reform had succeeded in fostering impressive economic growth, while keeping inflation in 
check, reducing public debt, and strengthening Israel's current account. But the Chair also 
highlighted a number of areas in which additional efforts were needed to s ustain economic growth 
and contribute to a better allocation of resources in the economy. This included reducing the gap 
between bound and applied tariffs. The Chair also noted the concerns expressed by a number of 
Members regarding remaining restrictions on trade, including a high level of tariff protection in 
Israel's agricultural sector.  
4.146.   Today, we are pleased to have the chance to review developments since the 2012 TPR and 
discuss Israel's recent economic performance.  
4.147.   Economic growth in Israel has been impressive since the previous review, providing evidence 
of the success of the government's reform efforts. Its core strength lies in its capacity for innovation. 
Israel's support for start -up enterprises and research and  development is fuelling an increase in 
domestic consumption and domestic investment. This, in turn, has led to a drop in the 
unemployment rate and has kept inflation low. One key change in Israel's trade and investment 
posture noted in the Secretariat's r eport is the pronounced shift in Israel's exports of goods to 
exports of services.   
4.148.   At the same time to lower the costs of imported goods, Israel reduced its average applied 
MFN tariff from 7.6% to 5.2% in 2018. Also, noted were Israel's increased commerc ial engagement 
toward countries in the Asian region and the European Union, and a concurrent decline in imports 
from free trade partners elsewhere.  
4.149.   Mutual trade and investment between the United States and Israel have generated increased 
employment opportu nities in both countries, and the United States continues to support Israel's 
efforts to boost economic growth through free and fair trade under the U.S. -Israel Free Trade 
Agreement. Furthermore, we applaud Israel for implementing the revised Information T echnology 
Agreement and the revised Government Procurement Agreement in addition to their acceptance of 
the Trade Facilitation Agreement.  
4.150.   Despite the positive aspects described in the Secretariat's report, however, there are areas 
where we believe Israel c ould make further improvements.  
4.151.   Continuing progress in eliminating trade restrictions and increasing transparency would 
benefit Israel's economy by improving efficiency and raising productivity to support sustained 
economic growth. We urge Israel to redoub le its efforts to open its market to world trade, particularly 
in the agriculture area, and to ensure world class intellectual property protection – all of this would 
greatly increase the competitiveness of the Israeli economy and lower the costs of living  borne by 
the Israeli citizen. The United States offers our questions and comments on the Israeli trade regime WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  in a constructive spirit and we would like to thank the Israeli delegation in advance for considering 
and responding to them.  
4.152.   The United States notes continued concerns with aspects of Israel's import prohibitions, 
licensing, and associated practices. We would welcome a better understanding of actions taken to 
address trade remedies, including legislative amendments to the Trade Levies Law and pro visions 
governing antidumping and countervailing duties.   
4.153.   We urge Israel to ensure prompt and full notification to WTO members of steps Israel intends 
to take to modify measures affecting imports, including the use of standards, technical regulations 
and conformity assessments. We urge Israel to recognize the WTO TBT Committee Decision on 
international standards, and we would welcome greater detail on how Israel is managing their 
regulatory impact assessment process.  
4.154.   We would like to recognize Israel's con tinued efforts to strengthen intellectual property 
protection, and in particular, its recent efforts to enhance patent protection and establish reasonable 
royalties. Nonetheless, we observe that some concerns on intellectual property remain. While the 
Secretariat's report highlights continued constructive steps taken by Israel in the area of intellectual 
property rights enforcement, we believe that further comprehensive, coordinated and sustained 
efforts in this area are necessary to ensure the protection o f intellectual property in Israel.  We would 
be interested in an update on any legislative, judicial or enforcement steps the Israeli government 
anticipates in this area.  
4.155.   We recognize Israel's view of the role that agriculture plays in its national securit y. 
Nevertheless, the significant and growing costs to the Israeli consumer of the use of licensing 
procedures to implement WTO and preferential tariff quotas on agricultural products should 
encourage Israel to re -examine its policies in this regard.   
4.156.   The United States welcomes Israel's continued support and commitment to the WTO. The 
United States appreciates the opportunity to participate in this review and provide observations. We 
look forward to continuing our work with Israel and our trading partners t o strengthen the global 
economy, allowing trade and investment opportunities to expand.  
REPUBLIC  OF KOREA  
4.157.   Korea and Israel have developed a strong and stable economic relationship since the 
establishment of diplomatic relations in 1962. Specifically, Korea  exports to Israel finished products 
such as automobiles and cell phones, and imports from Israel the necessary equipment and parts to 
manufacture finished goods. Thanks to this complementary trade structure, bilateral trade volume 
has consistently reached  over US$2 billion since 2011.  
4.158.   Korea and Israel launched bilateral FTA negotiations in May 2016 in order to deepen their 
complementary economic partnership. In March this year, the two countries held the 6th round of 
negotiations to discuss remaining issue s in the areas of goods, services, investment, SPS, 
cooperation and general provisions. I hope that bilateral economic relations will be further upgraded 
by concluding the FTA negotiations as soon as possible.  
4.159.   From a trade policy perspective, according to the Secretariat's report, the Israeli economy 
has performed well over the review period. The GDP growth rate has averaged 3.3% and the 
unemployment rate declined to a historic low of 4.2% in 2017.  
4.160.   Israel has been very active in the WTO. As the Secretariat' s report noted, Israel has accepted 
the expansion of the ITA as well as ratified the WTO TFA. Furthermore, Israel was among one of the 
first parties to accept the revised GPA. Korea appreciates Israel's active participation in the WTO 
and expects that it w ill make continuous efforts to strengthen the multilateral trading system.  
4.161.   As the Secretariat's report highlighted, the Israeli government has made efforts to improve 
and ease trade barriers with regard to regulations and SPS measures. However, as some Mem bers 
raised in their written questions, there still remain some concerns and questions regarding relevant 
Israeli trade policies. Korea urges Israel to continue to eliminate its trade barriers and share the 
results with the Members.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.162.   My delegation has submi tted, albeit somewhat late, our written questions on recent 
development and policy on the FTA and technical regulation. We look forward to receiving answers 
in due course.  
4.163.   Korea hopes to continuously develop our economic relationship with Israel going forw ard. In 
addition, we expect Israel to continue to contribute towards strengthening the multilateral trading 
system.  
4.164.   With this, we would like to express our deep appreciation to the Israeli delegation for its 
hard work and wish the delegation every success  in this TPR.  
ECUADOR  
4.165.   En lo principal, Ecuador, participa con un gran interés en este examen puesto que siempre 
es importante el diversificar y profundizar los mercados y productos, tanto de exportación como en 
la importación, así como también analizar la forma en que la política comercial coadyuva al desarrollo 
de un país que presenta ciertas características específicas en cuanto a su clima, para la producción 
de bienes agrícolas.  
4.166.   Para 2017 Ecuador exportó a Israel 13 millones de dólares EE.UU. Nuestros pr incipales 
productos exportados hacia el mercado israelí fueron palmitos, confituras, quinua y frutos 
comestibles.  
4.167.   En cuanto a las importaciones, nuestro país importó 26 millones de dólares EE.UU. para 
2017. Entre los principales productos importados destac amos placas de polímeros, aparatos de radio 
navegación, aparatos para pulverizar líquidos y otros aparatos mecánicos.  
4.168.   Por lo tanto, la balanza comercial del Ecuador con Israel ha presentado saldos deficitarios 
para Ecuador, en 2017 dicho balance fue de 13 millones de dólares EE.UU. Es claro que en nuestro 
país los saldos negativos permanentes son motivo de importante atención por el carácter dolarizado 
de la economía ecuatoriana.  
4.169.   Permítame ahora referirme brevemente al informe presentado por la Secretaría p ara este 
Examen de política comercial y destacar el rol activo en la política multilateral.  
4.170.   Es válido el destacar el crecimiento económico del periodo de examen, impulsado por el 
consumo privado y la inversión interna.  
4.171.   Asimismo, es plausible que, si bien la economía israelí, especializada en producción de bienes 
y servicios de alta tecnología, su gasto público destinado a estos sectores en cuanto a investigación 
y desarrollo fue alrededor del 4,3% del PIB en 2015, convirtiéndose en la mayor participación d e 
este rubro a nivel mundial. Vemos con interés esta activa política pública que propicia las condiciones 
necesarias para el beneficio del país.  
4.172.   Es así que nos ha parecido muy interesante la creación del área de innovación dentro del 
Ministerio de Economía  e Industria, misma que ofrecen programas para el desarrollo y la puesta en 
marcha de ideas innovadoras en una serie de etapas seriamente detalladas y determinadas.  
4.173.   En lo referente al sector externo, las exportaciones de servicios han registrado un importa nte 
incremento, liderando la participación en el PIB, con el 80%; y el saldo superavitario de la cuenta 
de servicios de la balanza de pagos.  
4.174.   Los sectores que han recibido mayor IED fueron, la informática, el sector manufacturero, las 
telecomunicaciones y l os servicios financieros.  
4.175.   Es importante también, recalcar la disminución de la tasa de desempleo, misma que llegó a 
un mínimo histórico de 4,2% en 2017.  
4.176.   El Ecuador resalta la importancia del ejercicio de transparencia y conocimiento de la política 
pública que representan los exámenes de política comercial en la OMC.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.177.   En este sentido, es de interés de nuestro país, recalcar una de nuestras preguntas sobre la 
"Ley de Protección a la Salud Pública (Alimentos)", que persigue tener un conocimiento más amplio 
sobre las certificaciones y comercialización de productos orgánicos. Para una economía como la 
ecuatoriana que no tiene control sobre su tipo de cambio, incrementar y diversificar nuestras 
exportaciones es una ardua y permanente tarea.  
4.178.   Para concluir, anticipam os nuestro agradecimiento a la delegación de Israel por sus 
respuestas a las preguntas que hemos planteado sobre algunos aspectos concretos de su política 
comercial, que proveerán de insumos importantes para el fortalecimiento de las relaciones entre 
nuest ros países.  
4.179.   Finalizo deseando a toda la delegación de Israel un exitoso Examen de política comercial.  
THAILAND  
4.180.   Thailand and Israel have enjoyed the close and cordial bilateral economic relations. Both 
countries signed the Trade Agreement in 2012, and the f irst Joint Trade Committee Meeting was 
successfully held in Bangkok in July 2015. In 2017, total trade between the two countries amounted 
to over US$1.3 billion, expanding by 22% from last year.  
4.181.   Israel is Thailand's fifth largest trading partner in the Mi ddle East. Both sides share 
complementary trade relations with a great potential to grow. Thailand's major exports are led by 
vehicles and parts, jewellery, machinery, plastics, fish products, and rice while Israel's key exports 
concentrate on jewellery, m achinery, optical equipment, fertilizers, and chemical products. We are 
pleased to highlight that Thailand has been Israel's biggest supplying market for rice for 15 years. 
We wish that both sides can achieve the trade target set at the Joint Trade Committ ee Meeting to 
boost our bilateral trade to US$2 billion by 2020.  
4.182.   Since the last Trade Policy Review in 2012, Israel's economic growth has averaged 3.3%, 
and GDP per capita increased to more than US$40,000 in 2017. We acknowledge that Israel's 
external posi tion remains strong with a current account surplus in every year of the review period, 
and the unemployment rate declined to a historical low of 4.2% last year.  
4.183.   Thailand welcomes Israel's consistent efforts in promoting trade liberalization by reducing 
tariffs. The average applied MFN tariff was considerably reduced from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018. 
Israel has taken a range of measures to increase competition in several sectors, including finance, 
telecoms, and air and sea transport. Moreover, reforms are continuing to reduce administrative costs 
and regulatory requirements for imports.  
4.184.   Thailand commends Israel for showing its commitment to the rules -based multilateral 
trading system, including by implementing the ITA Expansion Agreement, ratifying the TFA,  notifying 
its acceptance of the Protocol amending the TRIPS Agreement, and submitting a notification stating 
that it will stop using export subsidies for agricultural products from 1 January 2023.  
4.185.   Israel has a well -developed intellectual property system. During the review period, Israel 
undertook additional investment in the administrative functioning of the Israel Patent Office's 
examination procedures and modernized intellectual property legislation, particularly in the areas of 
patents and designs, whic h deserve positive mention.  
4.186.   Chair, in this review, Thailand submitted a few questions to Israel. We note from the 
Secretariat report that MFN applied rates of Israel exceeded their bound levels for 18 tariff lines on 
products such as parts and accessories of machines. In this regard, we request that Israel provide 
justification and clarification of this matter.  Furthermore, Israel has not made a notification on SPS 
measures since 2011 although some of the TBT notifications submitted since then may include 
references to SPS -related issues. Thailand would like to seek clarification whether measures with 
reference to the SPS matters could also be notified to the SPS Committee. Thailand thanks Israel in 
advance for written responses.  
4.187.   In conclusion, we wish Isra el a successful outcome of this Trade Policy Review.  
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  PHILIPPINES  
4.188.   We have a rich history of bilateral relations with Israel. The Philippines and Israel established 
our diplomatic relations in 1957 with the signing of the Treaty of Friendship in February 1 958. Early 
this year, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the signing of our Treaty of Friendship. 2017 marked 
the 80th anniversary of our former President Manuel L. Quezon's Open Door Policy, when from 1937 
and 1941 the Philippines became a sanctuary fo r 1,300 Jewish refugees rendered stateless during 
World War II.  
4.189.   Bilateral trade between the Philippines and Israel has great potential and has continued to 
grow in recent years. Philippine exports to Israel rose by 23.6% from US$46.23 million in 2015 to 
US$57.14 million in 2016. This was mainly due to increase in exports of semiconductor devices, fish 
fillets, and polypropylene. Likewise, Philippine imports from Israel expanded by 27.32% from 
US$103.99 million in 2015 to US$132.40 million in 2016. The incr ease was attributed to the increase 
in imports of tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, materials for manufacture of dice and 
semiconductor devices.  
4.190.   Israel is a founding and active member of the WTO. It has implemented the revised 
Information Technol ogy Agreement and the revised Government Procurement Agreement, and 
accepted the Trade Facilitation Agreement and the TRIPS amendments. It is also a co -signatory to 
the Joint Ministerial Declaration on the Establishment of a WTO Informal Work Programme for  MSMEs 
noting that small -and-medium enterprises employ 60% of Israel's workforce and constitute about 
99% of all its businesses.  
4.191.   Israel is an open, industrialized democracy with an average GDP growth rate of 3.3% from 
2012 through 2017. One of the core st rengths of the Israeli economy lies in its capacity for 
innovation. Expenditure on civilian R&D amounted to about 4.3% of GDP in 2015, which is the 
highest share in the world. The Philippines recognizes the Israel Innovation Authority, which 
encourages bot h local and foreign investment by offering a wide range of incentives and benefits to 
investors in industry, tourism, and real estate. We would appreciate receiving more information on 
the functioning of this institution and explore possible collaborations  with Israel as the Philippines 
also develops an innovation ecosystem through our government's Inclusive, Innovation -led, 
Industrial strategy or i3s (pronounced as "I cube S"). We are also very keen to learn more about 
Israel's foreign investment incentive  regime and its national digital health initiative. The Philippines 
has submitted a few other written questions based on Israel's government and secretariat reports, 
and we kindly thank Israel in advance for their written responses.  
4.192.   In closing, the Philipp ines looks forward to further enhancing the mutually beneficial 
economic relations between our two countries through bilateral, regional, and multilateral fora.  
INDIA  
4.193.   During the period under review the economy of Israel grew at an average rate of 3.3% and 
the GDP per capita increased to US$40,285 in 2017. Another noteworthy development was that in 
2013 Israel was able to augment domestic supplies of natural gas from the  Tamar field to address 
its energy security.  This also led to considerable savings in imports. Though the share of trade in 
GDP declined during the period the growth in the economy has been supplemented by strong growth 
in exports of services, private con sumption and domestic investments. The flow of both inward and 
outward foreign direct investment also remained positive averaging US$10 billion and US$7 billion 
respectively between 2012 -16.   
4.194.   The major challenges for Israel include raising productivity gr owth, increasing labour 
participation, addressing demographic challenges in the labour market, high burden of defence 
spending, diversifying the economy, addressing poverty and income inequalities.   
4.195.   We commend the government of Israel for the initiatives it has taken to keep the economy 
focussed on cutting edge level technologies in high tech goods and services notably in the areas of 
computer components manufacturing, software, medical, technology, pharmaceuticals and services. 
Israel also spends consider able amount on civilian R&D and has comprehensive innovation policy to 
preserve its core strengths in innovation.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  4.196.   India shares warm and friendly relations with Israel with regular high level political 
exchanges between both countries. Both countries have a  broad based institutional framework in 
place to promote cooperation in areas including trade, science and technology and agriculture. Trade 
between both countries has continued to grow and stood at US$5.4 billion in 2017 -18. There is 
considerable potentia l to promote trade in sectors like petroleum products, precious and 
semi-precious stones, electrical components, chemicals, agricultural equipment, pharmaceuticals 
and automobiles.  
4.197.   Companies from Israel are investing in India in high tech industries and s ectors like 
renewable energy, telecommunication, agriculture, chemicals, water technologies and real estate. 
Many Indian companies are also operating in Israel in the areas of information technology, 
pharmaceuticals, waste water treatment and irrigation.  
4.198.   The India -Israel FTA has also been under discussion for the last few years and conclusion of 
the Agreement will give a further boost to our trade and investment ties.  
4.199.   To conclude, we look forward to working closely with the authorities of Israel for furthe r 
expanding and harnessing the potential of our trade and investment ties for mutual benefit. We wish 
the delegation of Israel a productive and successful TPR.  
SINGAPORE  
4.200.   Israel and Singapore enjoy a strong and broad -based economic relationship. Bilateral t rade 
has been robust at S$1.76 billion in 2017, with Singapore importing more than S$853 million worth 
of Goods and Services from Israel for the year. Key products traded include precious metals, 
integrated circuits and specialty chemicals. The stock of Is raeli Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in 
Singapore was S$1.742 billion at the end of 2016. Singaporean investments into Israel during this 
review period include investment in an Israeli equity crowd -funding platform with the potential to 
support activities  of small -and medium -sized enterprises across Asia.  
4.201.   During the period under review, Israel implemented a series of measures that led to further 
trade liberalisation and increased competition in various services sectors. Notably, Israel's average 
applied MF N tariff fell from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018, while reforms undertaken in the financial 
services and telecommunications sectors have contributed to the addition of new players, expansion 
in consumer credit and availability of ICT -related service options  for consumers. These measures 
have enhanced the economic competitiveness of Israel, while allowing it to record sustainable 
average growth of more than 3% annually for the period under review.  
4.202.   Israel is reputed for its innovation and research and developm ent (R&D). Not only does 
Israel have the highest level of civilian R&D expenditure in the world, as a proportion of GDP, it has 
well-developed intellectual property infrastructure. This has enabled the emergence of a flourishing 
technology start -up scene a n area where Singaporean companies continue to have strong interest 
in. 
4.203.   Israel participates actively and constructively in all areas of the WTO's work. This is 
evidenced by its implementation of the revised Information Technology Agreement (ITA), and 
assum ing of 100% Category A commitments under the Trade Facilitation Agreement. Israel was 
among the first parties to accept the revised Government Procurement Agreement. Israel has also 
notified its revised schedule for phasing out all remaining agriculture ex port subsidies.  
4.204.   We encourage Israel to take steps to fulfil its outstanding transparency obligations in areas 
such as domestic support, import licensing, and sanitary and phytosanitary measures. We also urge 
Israel to bring its applied tariffs into confor mity with its bound commitments, as highlighted in the 
Secretariat's report  
4.205.   Singapore looks forward to building on our constructive cooperation with Israel and we wish 
Israel every success for this TPR.  
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  SRI LANKA  
4.206.   Israel with a knowledge based, technologi cally highly advanced, free market economy, has 
been successful in maintaining an average economic growth of 3.3% since its last review, despite 
decline in its share of trade to GDP ratio. The trade has grown in real terms though the values 
declined. Touri sm and services exports play a vital role in the economy, offsetting the merchandise 
deficits and contributing to maintain positive current account balance. We believe the recently 
commenced natural gas production project will boost the economy recovering all downturns 
experienced by the Israel economy. It is evident that the economy will be more resilient to external 
shocks with the commencement of projected natural gas exploitation projects in the country.  
4.207.   We note the unilateral liberalization of customs duties that has resulted reduction of average 
MFN duty from 7.6% in 2012 to 5.2% in 2018. Only 3.7% of tariff lines are subject to import duty 
above 20%. However, it is noted with concern the average applied agriculture tariff is high as 
approximately 20%,  whereas the average applied tariff on non -agricultural products is only 3%. We 
note with appreciation the Israel Government's decision to stick on to the Nairobi decision on export 
subsidies for agricultural products from 1st January 2023.  
4.208.   Let me briefly reflect on the bilateral trade and other economic relations between two 
countries. Though the bilateral trade does not reflect a regular pattern, Sri Lanka continues to enjoy 
a trade surplus with Israel. Diamonds are the major import as well as export prod uct to and from 
Sri Lanka. It represents 68% of Sri Lanka's exports to Israel and 78% of Sri Lanka's imports from 
Israel in 2017. We have noticed that Diamonds accounts for a greater portion of Israel's international 
trade with the world as well. This impl ies Sri Lanka is an important part of value chain in Israel's 
renowned diamond processing industry. In contrast, Israel is also an important buyer of Ceylon Tea.  
4.209.   The two countries have held Business Forums several times strengthening bilateral ties. In 
2007, Sri Lanka and Israel signed a historic Trade and Economic Co -operation Agreement for 
enhancing bilateral relations to new levels. Since then, the bilateral trade has surged by over 175%.  
4.210.   In concluding, my delegation appreciates Israel's valued contribut ion to the multilateral 
trading system and its active engagement in the negotiations. We also wish to commend the active 
contribution made by the Geneva based delegation of Israel in the WTO deliberations. We sincerely 
wish the delegation of Israel a succe ssful conclusion of its 5th Trade Policy Review.  
GEORGIA  
4.211.   At the outset, I would like to underline that existing partnership and cooperation with Israel 
is crucial for Georgia, particularly in the context of multi centennial friendship between the two 
peopl es.  
4.212.   I also would like to commend the Government of Israel and the Secretariat for their 
outstanding work in compiling the comprehensive report on trade policy developments over the 
course of the review period.  
4.213.   Georgia appreciates endeavours taken by Israel towards the economic development since 
the last review in 2012, which resulted in the economic growth averaged by 3.3% and increased 
GDP per capita to more than US$40.000 in 2017. It is also important to note that investment trends 
in country are excessively promising demonstrating average of US$10 billion inward and US$7 billion 
outward investment per year for 2012 -16 with the main recipients of FDI were manufacturing sector, 
information and financial services .  
4.214.   It is essential to highlight, that notwithstanding the decrease in investment flow from Israel 
to Georgia in last couple of years, we believe that the re -introduced favourable business and 
investment environment in Georgia will significantly contribute to an increase of bilateral investment 
activities.  
4.215.   In light of the relatively inactive trade and economic activities between Israel and Georgia 
and taking into account the fluctuating trends in terms of trade turnover during the review period 
expressed in  comparably low figures, we could, nevertheless, see some increasing trends over the 
recent years. Trade turnover amounted to US$20 million in 2017, showing 31% growth compared WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  to 2016. Export to Israel from Georgia in 2017 increased by 28% compared to the  previous year 
based on the export growth of such commodities as wine, mineral water, fruit juice, beer and others.  
4.216.   Moreover, it is of an utmost importance to underline that very recently relevant ministries 
of both states signed the joint declaration on the launch of the feasibility study on the negotiations 
of free trade agreement between Georgia and Israel. We do believe that the entire process will be 
conducted in accelerated manner, consequently producing the successful trade instrument which will 
serve as a foundation for the commencement of new stage for economic development.  
4.217.   Israel is a developed, growth -oriented and high -income State specializing in high -tech goods 
and services together with significant agricultural exports. It is in Georgia's int erest to enhance and 
consolidate the cooperation with Israel and benefit from the profound experience and knowledge it 
has in these sectors.    
4.218.   In conclusion, we would like to reiterate that Israel is a valued partner of Georgia. We 
strongly believe the ex isting durable and amicable cooperation will be maintained and developed 
through continued joint efforts.  
4.219.   We wish Israel a very successful review.  
PANAMÁ  
4.220.   Felicitamos al Israel por sus logros macroeconómicos, en especial por su importante 
crecimiento en tér minos de PIB per cápita, acompañado de una alta tasa de desarrollo humano y 
bajo desempleo. No obstante, queda como importante atender los desafíos de desarrollo social para 
el bienestar económico.  
4.221.   Israel y Panamá mantienen estrechos lazos que se han vist o reflejados en cooperaciones 
internacionales. Desde el 2010 también mantienen un activo acuerdo de promoción comercial. 
Panamá es un importador de invernaderos de hierro y equipos electrónicos tanto médico como de 
comunicación. Mientras Panamá es un expor tador de madera y otras materias primas a Israel.  
4.222.   En miras de aumentar esta relación comercial el 17 de mayo de este año ambas naciones 
firmaron además un acuerdo de libre comercio en cual se encuentra en estos momentos en proceso 
de rectificación de las respectivas Asambleas. Esperamos que este tratado resulte en un aumento 
importante en el intercambio comercial con beneficio mutuo.  
4.223.   Israel ha logrado una gran diversificación económica con importantes logros en el desarrollo 
de tecnología específicamente en el desarrollo de software, equipo de comunicación, equipo médico 
y equipos de riego. Así también un robusto sector de servicios financieros, de logística y turismo. 
Israel es un ejemplo a emular en el desarrollo del sector de innovación, siendo el país con la inversión 
más alta como su porcentaje del PIB.  
4.224.   En la agricultura ha logrado importantes avances en transformar zonas antes no aptas para 
la producción, a gran costo para la nación. Exhortamos a Israel de mantenerse dentro de la línea de 
sus compromi sos MGA y prestar mayor atención a las subvenciones a las exportaciones en 
agricultura.  
4.225.   Felicitamos a Israel por su participación en grupos como MSMEs y Comercio Electrónico y 
por su activa organización de diversos grupos de expertos. Esperamos una contin uada participación 
más activa en los temas de transferencia de tecnología, comercio electrónico, servicios y desarrollo 
agropecuario. Sus contribuciones serán de gran beneficio para la OMC y el desarrollo de nuestros 
diálogos.  
4.226.   Deseamos a Israel mucho éxit o en este examen y destacar la admirable gestión de su 
delegación en Ginebra.  
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  PERÚ  
4.227.   Gracias al presente Examen, el Perú ha conocido con satisfacción los diversos éxitos que 
Israel ha conseguido en el ámbito económico durante el período bajo examen, entre los cuales 
resaltan el crecimiento sostenido, la amplia apertura y participación en el comercio y la inversión 
internacionales, el desarrollo de la innovación, entre otros. Saludamos también los esfuerzos por el 
cumplimiento de los compromisos de Israel en  el marco de esta institución, así como la muy activa 
participación de la delegación de Israel ante la OMC.  
4.228.   Perú e Israel mantienen muy buenas relaciones. En este marco, nuestro intercambio sigue 
creciendo desde hace muchos años, alcanzando los 100 millone s de dólares EE.UU. El Perú 
experimenta un déficit comercial con Israel que se ha pronunciado a lo largo del último quinquenio. 
Sin embargo, las exportaciones de productos no tradicionales del Perú a Israel componen una parte 
importante de nuestras exporta ciones totales a Israel. Seguiremos trabajando con Israel para que 
nuestras exportaciones crezcan, fortaleciendo nuestra relación comercial. Asimismo, resalto que el 
Perú e Israel hemos negociado hasta 2016 el Acuerdo de Comercio de Servicios TISA, cuya 
negociación esperamos retome prontamente. Finalmente, hacemos eco de otras delegaciones al 
señalar la importancia de eliminar prontamente los subsidios a la exportación de productos agrícolas 
israelíes, para asegurar condiciones equilibradas para el comercio  internacional de dichos productos.  
4.229.   Mi delegación no ha planteado preguntas específicas para este Examen, por lo que sólo me 
resta reiterar el saludo del Perú al Gobierno de Israel por sus importantes resultados económicos, y 
desearle mucho éxito a futuro en estos desarrollos, así como para el presente Examen.  
TOGO  
4.230.   Cet examen de la politique commerciale de l'État d'Israël nous permet de mieux comprendre, 
non seulement la situation de l'économie Israélienne depuis la dernière revue de sa politique 
commercial e tenue en 2012, mais aussi et surtout les ambitions qu'a l'État d'Israël pour son 
économie à l'avenir.  
4.231.   Selon des statistiques israéliennes, le Togo était en 2013 le deuxième partenaire commercial 
d'Israël en Afrique après l'Afrique du Sud. Les relations é conomiques et commerciales entre nos 
deux États ont continué de se renforcer au fil des années. En 2015, les importations togolaises 
s'élevaient à un peu plus de trois millions de dollars EU. Elles ont connu une importante baisse en 
2016 (plus de 42%). Mai s en 2017, elles ont repris et ont connu une légère hausse de 10%.  
4.232.   Au niveau des exportations de ces dernières années, même si en valeurs elles ont été plutôt 
faibles, elles sont passées de 14 000 dollars EU en 2015 à 178 000 dollars EU en 2016, soit une 
hausse de 1171%.  
4.233.   Certes, la balance commerciale demeure en faveur de l'État d'Israël mais le constat est que 
le déficit s'est réduit ces deux dernières années et pourrait continuer à se réduire si le potentiel 
commercial et les possibilités d'accès au march é entre nos deux pays étaient pleinement exploités.  
4.234.   Selon le rapport du Secrétariat, depuis le dernier examen de la politique commerciale de 
l'État d'Israël, l'économie israélienne a réalisé des résultants intéressants, voyant son produit 
intérieur brut (PIB) croître en moyenne de 3,3% par an de 2012 à 2017. Des améliorations 
importantes ont aussi été constatées sur le marché du travail avec une baisse notable du taux de 
chômage et une hausse du taux d'activités. En 2017, le PIB par habitant était de 40 0 00 dollars EU, 
plaçant Israël au 22ème rang des pays selon des statistiques du FMI.  
4.235.   Les principaux moteurs de croissance ont été la consommation privée et l'investissement 
intérieur et si le commerce est très important pour l'économie, son ratio (marchandi ses et services) 
au PIB a chuté de 72% en 2012 à 57 % en 2017. Toutefois, en dépit d'une baisse de la valeur des 
importations et des exportations de marchandises sur la période 2012 -2016, la valeur nominale 
totale des échanges (marchandises et services) a augmenté du fait de la forte croissance des 
exportations de services et de la hausse plus modeste des importations de services.  
4.236.   La position extérieure d'Israël demeure solide avec un excédent du compte courant chaque 
année de la période considérée et des r éserves confortables dans le contexte d'une appréciation de WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  la devise nationale. En effet, sa balance commerciale est de manière générale excédentaire avec 
des exportations qui ont atteint un niveau de 102.3 milliards de dollars EU en 2017 contre des 
impor tations d'une valeur de 96.7 milliards de dollars EU.  
4.237.   Pour terminer, le Togo voudrait féliciter Israël pour les diverses initiatives prises en vue 
d'une meilleure libéralisation de ses échanges gage d'une amélioration des conditions de vie de sa 
population  et lui souhaite un plein succès dans son Examen de politique commerciale.  
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  5  REPLIES BY THE REPRE SENTATIVE OF ISRAEL AND ADDITIONAL COMME NTS 
5.1.  I wish to thank all Members for their interest, comments, questions, kind words and in some 
instances, challenging remarks on our trade policies.  
5.2.  Special thanks to the discussant, Ambassador Roberto Zapata, for your efforts and insightful 
contributions.  
5.3.  Thank you Ambassador Eloi Laourou for your contributions and for the efficient manner you 
handled the discussions.  
5.4.  I also would like to thank the Secretariat for the organization of the meeting and for their hard 
work throughout this whole process.  
5.5.  Israel recognizes the importance and value of the TPR — not only does it enhance transparency 
within the MTS, but it also he lps build trust between Members as well as facilitate and foster trade.  
5.6.  We took careful note of all statements made on Tuesday. They provided an informed 
assessment of our participation in the WTO, of our trade policy and our bilateral relations.  
5.7.   Israel r eceived nearly 300 written questions. We have already answered all the questions 
submitted within the deadline.  
5.8.  After the deadline and during the meeting, we received additional questions to which we have 
started sending responses.  
5.9.  We will complete respo nding to the rest of them as soon as possible, within the one -month 
deadline. And in this sense, I would like to thank again my team for working very hard the past 
couple of days to answer some of the questions that have been raised by Members.  
5.10.   With refere nce to Tuesday's meeting, let me comment on some of the main issues raised by 
Members.  
5.11.   I would like to begin by addressing the comments made by several Members concerning 
Israel's agricultural trade policy.  
5.12.   Members highlighted the high tariffs on imports of agricultural products and the gap between 
applied and bound rates.  
5.13.   It is true that relatively high tariffs are imposed on certain agricultural products. However, 
the support that Israel provides to its farming sector is relatively limited.  
5.14.   As a result,  tariffs are used as the main policy tool to support and protect a sector that 
contributes to the country's important interests in several aspects including food security, rural 
development, protection of green spaces and allowing farming activity under ha rsh conditions.  
5.15.   It is important to note that Israel is a net food importing country. Import of food and 
agricultural products increased from US$2.7 billion in 2006 to US$6.1 billion in 2017 whereas exports 
of these products increased from US$1.5 billion t o only US$2.2 billion.  
5.16.   Bound tariffs in Israel's schedule are the result of ceiling bindings used by Israel in the 
Uruguay Round.  
5.17.   However, applied agricultural tariffs on most of the imports to Israel are much lower than the 
bound ones.  
5.18.   This import polic y expands trade and allows market access opportunities beyond Israel's 
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  5.19.   Israel reviews its policy periodically, lowering the applied tariffs or increasing voluntary TRQs 
whenever deemed necessary.  
5.20.   This has been the case for beef, yogurt, butter, cream, semi -hard cheese, different types of 
fish and olive oil.  
5.21.   We conclude this topic by thanking Members for acknowledging Israel's unique contribution 
in innovation and agro -technology as well as commend ing us in changing our schedule on export 
subsidies for agricultural products.  
5.22.   Let me turn to transparency, which Israel believes is one of the pillars of the work in this 
Organization.  
5.23.   We have a good record regarding our notifications, as pointed out by several Members and 
as evidenced by our complete record in agriculture and anti -dumping semi -annual notifications.  
5.24.   In addition, Israel recently submitted its notifications on STEs and Subsidies and we are 
currently working on completing and submitting our  Import Licensing notification and the 
transparency TF notification.  
5.25.   For our SPS notifications, it is worth noting that during the preparation of the Secretariat 
report it was brought to our attention that some TBT notifications might also be relevant to the SPS 
mechanism.  
5.26.   We plan to look into the matter and make the necessary changes moving forward.  
5.27.   Continuing with transparency and specifically that related to Tariff Rate Quotas, the 
information is published on the Ministry of Economy and Industry and th e Ministry of Agriculture and 
Rural Development's websites.  
5.28.   Several Members asked about the applied rates exceeding Israel's bound rates.  
5.29.   We are currently reviewing these tariff lines and we will make the necessary adjustments as 
soon as possible.  
5.30.   Another  theme with great deal of interest was Israel's innovation ecosystem and digital health.  
5.31.   We are always happy to share information and best practices on these topics, and we have 
done so in various committees at the WTO and other organizations.  
5.32.   In this co ntext, we appreciate the comments made by Members on Israel's high -level IP 
system.  
5.33.   Israel views Intellectual Property Rights as an important element of its thriving innovation 
ecosystem.  
5.34.   Members also expressed some interest in the TAMA mechanism.  
5.35.   In this sense, I believe it is important to clarify that the TAMA mechanism no longer applies 
to alcoholic beverages as we have been phasing out this mechanism in recent years and TAMA 
currently applies to only a couple of products.  
5.36.   It should be noted that as an alternative to TAMA, importers have the option of declaring the 
actual wholesale value of their products.  
5.37.   There was also some interest by Members in Israel's foreign investment regime.  
5.38.   Let me first state that Israel is open to foreign investors and we welcome and encourage 
capital investment across practically all sectors, with some limited exceptions subject to specific 
regulations.  WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  5.39.   Moreover, we have no specific legislation that requires pre –screening or approval of 
investments by foreigners in Israel.   
5.40.   Another area of interest for several Members was Israel's financial sector, which has been 
subject to several reforms since 2012 in order to increase competition in the Israeli market.  
5.41.   The latest reforms were introduced in 2016 which tackled the regulat ory frameworks such as 
non-banking credit institutions and deposits without credit, to name a few.  
5.42.   Israel looks forward to continuing our engagement and work with WTO Members in order to 
promote and guarantee an effective, open and predictable rules -based trade system. Thank you 
Chair.  
DISCUSSANT  
5.43.   Mr. Chairman, H.E. Ambassador Eloi Laourou (Benin), Mr. Ohad Cohen, Trade Commissioner, 
Head of the Foreign Trade Administration at the Ministry of Economy (and Head of the delegation of 
Israel), H.E. Ambassador Av iva Raz Shechter, distinguished colleagues.  
5.44.   As we approach the end of our deliberations, let me first highlight the good level of 
engagement shown in this TPR; clearly Israel's policies are of great interest to Members. Israel had 
around 300 questions and heard the views of 31 Members on Tuesday and today. The Members 
heard a very detailed presentation from Mr. Cohen on Tuesday about Israel's economic, trade and 
investment regimes, and also listened to the comprehensive responses from the Trade Commissioner  
and his team just a few minutes ago. I believe there has been a fruitful exchange of views, and thus 
a successful exercise.  
5.45.   Israel was highly commended for the progress done since its last review, particularly on its 
sound economic policy, through which it has achieved solid macroeconomic results. Furthermore, 
Members recognized the important role played by its innovation polic y as a driver of growth and 
competitiveness. I could not agree more with these assessments.  
5.46.   In addition, Members described their dynamic bilateral commercial relationship in trade in 
goods, services and investment, which is conducted either in the broader context of the WTO, or 
through bilateral institutional arrangements. In particular, they highlighted Israel's distinctive role 
in complementing the value chains and the economies of its trading partners through its innovative 
technological contributions. I  am confident the same can be said of its efforts to continue the 
diversification of its international trade through unilateral measures, and the negotiations of new 
Free Trade Agreements with Colombia, Panama, China, Korea, India, Ukraine, Viet Nam and th e 
Eurasian Economic Union.  
5.47.   We all noted Israel's unilateral liberalizations efforts, and commend Israel's desire to 
strengthen the multilateral trading system, through continuous participation in WTO initiatives, be 
it fully established ones, like the Gove rnment Procurement Agreement, the Information Technology 
Agreement, or new ones, like the initiatives derived from the Buenos Aires joint statements, which 
include areas such as domestic regulation on trade in services; micro, small and medium enterprises,  
and e -commerce.  
5.48.   Members also highlighted that additional work could be undertaken in some areas. Indeed, 
although Israel has succeeded in largely opening its economy to international competition for the 
mutual benefit of its businesses, consumers and trad ing partners, products in some sectors remain 
highly protected, like in agriculture, or de facto closed, such as retail financial services and 
construction. The sense from several Members is that more can be done in these areas in order to 
enable well -functioning markets. I hope that the recent antitrust reforms, for example, contributes 
to improving the business environment, reducing the cost of living of the population and enhancing 
consumers choices and welfare.  
5.49.   I encourage Israel to pursue further refo rming efforts, so as to be able to witness their 
outcomes in the near future. I am confident that the Israeli dynamic and responsive political system 
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  5.50.   I trust that Israel's high -regard to the multilateral trading system and its rules, combined with 
the country's innovative and entrepreneurial spirit will keep yielding novelties and technological 
advances in multiple sectors, including industrial and digital goods, wa ter management and health 
care, which will continue to have a positive effect in its growth and development.  
5.51.   I have nothing more but to congratulate Trade Commissioner Cohen, his team, and the 
Mission of Israel in Geneva for the remarkable work done in thi s review, to wish them success in 
tackling the challenges ahead, and to wish the delegation of Israel a warm farewell and a safe trip 
back to its capital. Thank you.  
URUGUAY  
5.52.   Uruguay mantiene amistosas y constructivas relaciones con Israel en los distintos ámbitos de 
la relación bilateral: tanto en el plano político, económico -comercial, como de cooperación y cultura.  
5.53.   Desde el último examen de las políticas comerciales de Israel en el año 2012, el 
relacionamiento político y comercial entre Uruguay e Israel s e ha fortalecido.  
5.54.   Las relaciones bilaterales entre Uruguay e Israel remontan a la creación misma del Estado de 
Israel, en 1948, y esto explica la estabilidad de sus relaciones comerciales, impulsadas asimismo 
por el acuerdo comercial en el marco del Mercos ur. 
5.55.   En diciembre de 2016, el Ministro de Relaciones Exteriores de Uruguay, Don Rodolfo Nin 
Novoa, realizó una visita oficial al Estado de Israel durante la cual mantuvo una reunión de trabajo 
con el Primer Ministro Benjamín Netanyahu. Durante la misma, se suscribió un Acuerdo de 
cooperación y asistencia mutua en cuestiones aduaneras entre ambos países, el cual constituye un 
significativo instrumento para la facilitación del comercio bilateral, así como para la prevención, 
investigación, combate y persecució n de ilícitos aduaneros.  
5.56.   Con relación al intercambio comercial, las exportaciones de Uruguay hacia Israel totalizaron 
los 157 millones de dólares EE.UU. durante el año 2017, y se concentraron en los siguientes 
productos: carne y despojos comestibles, prepa raciones de hortalizas y frutas, máquinas y aparatos 
eléctricos, y cereales, entre otros.  
5.57.   En cuanto a las importaciones desde Israel, el valor importado por Uruguay durante el año 
2017 totalizó la cifra de 18 millones de dólares EE.UU., y se concentró en l os siguientes productos: 
máquinas, aparatos y artefactos mecánicos; productos diversos de las industrias químicas; 
máquinas, aparatos y material eléctrico, entre otros.  
5.58.   En el ámbito de la OMC, Uruguay quisiera resaltar que Israel aceptó el Acuerdo sobre 
Facilitación del Comercio de la OMC el 8 de diciembre de 2017 y ha presentado una notificación 
sobre los compromisos de la categoría A.  
5.59.   Asimismo, se destaca el trabajo realizado por el Organismo de las Pequeñas y Medianas 
Empresas de Israel, dependiente del Ministerio de Economía e Industria, que se ocupa de coordinar 
las ayudas públicas a las pequeñas y medianas empresas. Unas 540.000 pequeñas empresas 
emplean al 60% de la mano de obra israelí contratada en el sector empresarial, y constituyen cerca 
del 99% de todas las empresas de Israel.  
5.60.   Uruguay felicita a Israel por su trabajo en este ámbito, y alienta a dicho país a continuar 
participando del Grupo Informal de Trabajo de las MIPYMES de la OMC, a los efectos de aunar 
esfuerzos hacia la exitosa integración de las MIPYMES en el comercio internacional.  
5.61.   Finalmente, quisiéramos reafirmar el interés de seguir trabajando para alcanzar un resultado 
positivo en la 12a Conferencia Ministerial de la OMC, y proteger el sistema multilateral de comercio 
basado en normas previsibles, transparentes y equilibradas.  
5.62.   Uruguay le desea a Israel el mayor de los éxitos en su quinto examen de políticas comerciales.  
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  EUROPEAN  UNION  
5.63.   Let me first thank Israel for the comprehensive overview presented last Tuesday and this 
morning of t he main developments occurred during the review period. We also thank Israel for 
replying to our questions.  
5.64.   The EU is pleased to note that this review has been very useful for better understanding the 
trade policy of Israel and hopes that it will take duly  into account some of the few challenges 
highlighted by Members.  
5.65.   As mentioned, the EU appreciates the timely replies provided to our questions.  
5.66.   We have submitted four follow -up questions related to areas such as competition, costs and 
time lines for unload ing shipments at ports, test certificates, and financial sector reforms. We look 
forward to the replies in due course.  
5.67.   In conclusion, the EU would like to thank Israel for its constructive participation in this 
exercise.  
UNITED  STATES  
5.68.   The delegation of the  United States wishes to express its appreciation to Trade Commissioner 
Ohad Cohen for his excellent stewardship of Israel's Trade Policy Review. We also want to recognize 
the extensive efforts made by Israel's Mission and other government officials to res pond to the many 
questions posed by Members. Ambassador Zapata, we thank you for your insightful remarks which 
helped guide us through this review and we greatly appreciate the work of the Secretariat staff in 
preparing the policy review documents that mad e these discussions possible.  
5.69.   We appreciate Trade Commissioner Ohad Cohen's remarks this morning acknowledging 
Members' questions concerning market access for agriculture.  
5.70.   The active participation of Members in this Trade Policy Review serves to highlight the keen 
interest we all share in trade -related developments in Israel.  
5.71.   In closing, the United States appreciates the opportunity to have participated in this TPR, and 
we offer our sincere congratulations to the entire Israeli delegation for a successful T rade Policy 
Review.  
MR. OHAD  COHEN  (HEAD  OF DELEGATION)  
5.72.   I just want to say that, on a personal note, as I said on Tuesday, this is my second TPR, I 
believe it will be the last one. So, I just want to thank all Members, my team and the Mission in 
Geneva hea ded by Ambassador Aviva Raz Shechter. I want again to commend Mr. Asi Yosef, who is 
going back to Jerusalem in a month, so I wish him success and a soft landing in the Holy Land. I 
want to thank Ambassador Zapata and you, Chair, and the Secretariat for the  hard work. I hope we 
will meet again in seven years. Thank you.  
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  6  CONCLUDING REMARKS B Y THE CHAIRPERSON  
6.1.  This fifth Trade Policy Review of Israel has given us the opportunity to discuss the trade and 
investment policies of Israel and their development since the last review in 2012. I would like to 
thank the head of the Israeli delegation, Mr. Ohad Cohen, the Trade Commissioner in the Ministry 
of Economy and Industry, for his statements and the discussant, Ambassador Roberto Zapata of 
Mexico, for his int eresting and perceptive comments. I would also like to thank all delegations for 
their interest in this Review with over 300 questions submitted before the review by 22 delegations, 
and 30 delegations intervening on the first day of our meeting.  
6.2.  Members co mmended Israel for having taken measures to further liberalize trade over the past 
six years, following protests in 2011 about the high cost of living. Since then, Israel has pursued a 
unilateral process of trade liberalization, notably by eliminating tari ffs on many consumer goods. 
Israel is a high -income country with a strong economy and a GDP per capita of over US$40,000. 
During the period under review, economic growth averaged 3.3%, inflation has been subdued and 
unemployment declined to a historic low of 4.2% in 2017. It was noted that although the value of 
trade in goods declined during the period under review, trade in services grew strongly, particularly 
exports of computer and other high -tech services. Furthermore, the decline in the value of trade in 
goods was not caused by measures that restrict trade but by the decline in imports of hydrocarbons 
as the Tamar gas field started production in 2013 replacing imports of gas, while Israeli goods' 
exports declined for a number of reasons including an app reciating currency.  
6.3.  In addition to exports of services, economic growth has been driven by several factors, 
including Israel's growing strength in innovation and technology, private consumption, and domestic 
investment. Many delegations praised Israel's ec onomic performance and noted that it could be even 
stronger if Israel were to open up further to competition from imports and investments by foreign 
service providers.  
6.4.  Many delegations were particularly interested in Israel's policies concerning high techn ology 
goods and services and they noted the high level of investment in civilian research and development 
which is consistently over 4% of GDP. Several Members wanted to know more about the Israel 
Innovation Authority and its role in promoting the high -tech sector which is, in many ways, the basis 
for Israel's strong performance. As several delegations noted, research and development, not only 
in computers and electronics but also in more traditional fields like irrigation and chemicals, must 
be backed by a  robust legislative framework for the protection of intellectual property rights and the 
enforcement of these rights. However, while recognizing improvements in the law and its 
enforcement, a number of Members encouraged Israel to do more in this regard.  
6.5.  Trade reforms undertaken by Israel over the past six years were noted by many delegations. 
In particular, Israel's autonomous tariff reductions which reduced the average applied MFN tariff to 
5.2% in 2017 from 7.6% in 2012 with over two -thirds of tariff lin es duty free. In addition, Israel is 
currently implementing a programme to reduce the regulatory burden and cut administrative costs 
for imports, and it is in the process of aligning many technical standards to international standards.  
6.6.  Israel's active role  in WTO was praised by Members who noted that Israel had accepted the 
amendment to the TRIPS Agreement, ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement and submitted a 
notification of its Category A commitments, and notified that it would no longer give export s ubsidies 
for agricultural products after 1 January 2023. Israel is also a party to the expanded ITA and the 
revised Government Procurement Agreement. Some delegations also welcomed Israel's active 
participation in the ongoing discussions on recent joint in itiatives after MC11. Members remarked 
that Israel has signed regional trade agreements with Canada, EFTA, the EU, Jordan, Mexico, 
MERCOSUR, Turkey, and the United States, while new free trade agreements concluded with 
Colombia and Panama are not yet in fo rce. In addition, the Israeli delegation informed Members that 
Israel is currently engaged in negotiations with China, the Republic of Korea, India, Ukraine, 
Viet Nam, and the Eurasian Economic Union.  
6.7.  While noting that Israel is largely open to trade and i nvestment and has taken several initiatives 
over the past six years to reduce barriers to trade, Members also highlighted several areas where 
they felt more could be done. In particular, they noted that tariffs on some products remain high, 
including on fi sh and fish products and agriculture in general, but particularly animals and animal 
products, dairy products, and fruits and vegetables. In addition, the domestic TAMA tax is usually WT/TPR/W/153  • Israel  
 
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  based on local prices, which being higher than import prices is perceive d by some delegations as an 
additional charge on imports. Furthermore, many high tariffs are either specific duties or in more 
complex forms, the applied tariff on some products is in excess of the tariff bindings, and about 
one-quarter of tariff lines are  not bound. In addition to high tariffs, Members also raised concerns 
about import prohibitions on some products, non -automatic licensing on others, and other measures 
which restrict imports.  
6.8.  Another area where some delegations felt improvements could be m ade was in investment. 
Although the investment regime was generally open, there is little competition from foreign 
operators in some areas, such as retail banking, insurance, and construction and there are foreign 
ownership restrictions in other areas such  as air and maritime transport services, and 
telecommunications and broadcasting.  
6.9.  While Israel was praised for its good record for notifications, particularly for being up -to-date 
with notifications on domestic support for agriculture, several delegations pointed out that there 
were few SPS notifications while some TBT notifications concerned SPS measures. Furthermore, 
some other notifications are currently outstanding, such as for import licensing, quantitative 
restrictions, and state trading enterprises.  
6.10.   Israel has answered all questions submitted before the deadline of 3 July. This TPR will be 
successfully concluded when Israel has replied to all outstanding questions submitted before the 
meeting. I am sure Israel has taken note of the points made during this meeting - including those 
comments that suggested more could be done to improve the trade and investment climate for both 
high- and low -tech goods and services.  
__________