G/L/1046  
 
9 October 2013  
(13-5507)  Page: 1/2  
   
 
REPORT (2013) OF THE WORKING PARTY ON 
STATE TRADING ENTERPRISES 
1  ORGANIZATION OF THE WORK OF THE WORKING PARTY 
1.  The Working Party on State Trading Enterpri ses was established by the Council for Trade in 
Goods at its meeting of 20 February 1995, pursua nt to paragraph 5 of the Understanding on the 
Interpretation of Article XVII of the General Agr eement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (hereinafter "the 
Understanding"). Membership of the Working Party is open to all Members indicating their wish to 
serve on it. Observer governments in the General Council of the WTO have observer status in the 
Working Party. During the year under review, the Working Party held one formal meeting under the Chairmanship of Mr Humberto Jimenez Torres (Ecuador). 
2.  The mandate of the Working Party is set out in paragraph 5 of the Understanding. The Working 
Party completed its mandate to develop an illustrative list of state trading relationships and activities with the adoption of the Illustrative List by the Council for Trade in Goods on 
15 October 1999 (G/STR/4). Having also completed the mandated revision of the questionnaire on 
state trading, the Working Party now reviews noti fications in light of the revised questionnaire 
adopted on 14 November 2003 (G/STR/3/Rev.1). 
3.  This Report is submitted under paragraph 5 of the Understanding. It sets out the activities of 
the Working Party during the year under review. 
4.  In 2013, the Working Party held a formal meet ing on 7 October. The minutes of this meeting 
will be circulated as document G/STR/M/25. The next regular meeting of the Working Party is 
scheduled for 9 October 2014. 
2  NOTIFICATION AND REVIEW OF MEMBERS' STATE TRADING ACTIVITIES 5.  Article XVII:4 of the GATT 1994 and paragraph 1 of the Understanding require Members to 
notify their state trading enterprises to the Council for Trade in Goods. New and full notifications 
were first required in 1995 and, subsequently, every third year thereafter, while updating notifications were to be made in the intervening years. On 11 November 2003, the Working Party 
adopted the recommendation contained in docu ment G/STR/5 regarding the frequency of 
notifications. This recommendation, approved by the Council for Trade in Goods on 26 November 2003, modified the frequency of notifications on state trading enterprises to new and full notifications on a biannual basis only. The new frequency of notifications was to be 
implemented for a trial phase of four years, commencing on 30 June 2004. On 3 October 2008 and 
16 June 2010, the Working Party respectively  adopted the recommendations contained in 
documents G/STR/6 and G/STR7, each time concluding that it would be desirable to extend the 
new frequency of notifications for two additional years. 
6.  Paragraph 6 of the recommendation in docume nt G/STR/7 directed the Working Party to review 
the situation with regard to compliance with the notification obligation and the frequency of 
notifications at the end of the two year extension period. At its formal meeting on 8 June 2012, 
the Working Party adopted the recommendation contained in document G/STR/8 to extend the current frequency of notification on an indefinite basis. 
7.  In the period under review, 39 new and full notifications and 12 updating notifications were 
received. The Working Party reviewed all of these notifications at its regular meeting on 
7 October 2013. The new and full notifications included: (a) the 2012 notifications from Armenia; G/L/1046 
 
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  Ecuador; India; Lichtenstein; Malaysia; Mali; Moldova; Peru; Singapore; South Africa; Thailand; 
and Uruguay (b) the 2010 notifications from Armenia; Malaysia; Mali; Peru; South Africa; Thailand and Uruguay (c) the 2008 notifications from Barbados; Malaysia; Mali; Peru; South Africa; and Uruguay; (d) the 2006 notifications from Barbados; Malaysia; Mali; Peru; South Africa; and 
Uruguay; (e) the 2004 notifications from Mali; South Africa; and Uruguay; and (f) the 2001 
notifications from Mali; Singapore; and Uruguay; and (g) the 1998 notifications from Mali and Uruguay; (h) and the 1995 notification from Mali. The updating notifications reviewed were as 
follows: (a) the 2003 notifications from Mali; Sout h Africa; and Uruguay; (b) the 2002 notifications 
from Mali; Singapore; and Uruguay; (c) the 2000 and 1999 notifications from Mali and Uruguay; and (d) the 1996 and 1997 notifications from Mali. 
8.  At the October 2013 meeting of the Working Party, the European Union posed a written 
question to India regarding its notification in G/STR/N/14/IND.
1 Pakistan posed two questions at 
this meeting, the first regarding India's notifica tion in G/STR/N/14/IND, and the second regarding 
Malaysia's notification in G/STR/N/14/MYS.2 
9.  The Working Party adopted its Annual Report to the Council for Trade in Goods for the 
year 2013. 
3  COMPLIANCE WITH THE NOTIFICATION OBLIGATION  
10.  During the year under review to 7 October 2013, 11 new and full notifications have been 
received for the 2012 notification period (G/STR/N/14), as listed in paragraph 7 above. The following Members have not submitted any notification for the current period: Albania, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, the Kingdom of Bahrain,  Bangladesh, Barbados , Belize, Benin, the 
Plurinational State of Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Burundi, 
Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Ch ina, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte 
d'Ivoire, Cuba, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, 
Egypt, Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Iceland, 
Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, the Kyrgyz Republic, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, 
Maldives, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongol ia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique Myanmar, 
Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Philippines, 
Qatar, Rwanda, Russian Federation, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Tanzania, the former Yugoslav  Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad 
and Tobago, Tunisia, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, 
Viet Nam, and Zimbabwe. 
11.  Information on the status of state trading notifications since 1995 is set out in document 
G/STR/10. 
 
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1 G/STR/Q1/IND/5. 
2 G/STR/Q1/IND/6 and G/STR/Q1/MYS/1 to be issued.