. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/COMTD/N/22 
27 July 2007 
 (07-3217) 
Committee on Trade and Development Original:   English 
  
 
AMENDMENT TO THE FIRST AGREEMEN T ON TRADE NEGOTIATIONS AMONG 
DEVELOPING MEMBER COUNTRIES OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL  
COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC (BANGKOK AGREEMENT) 
 
Notification by China
 
 
 
  The following communication, dated 15 May 2007, is being circulated at the request of the delegation of China. 
 
_______________ 
 
 
AMENDMENT OF BANGKOK AGREEMENT AS ASIA-PACIFIC  
TRADE AGREEMENT (APTA) 
 
 
 The Permanent Mission of China to the WTO, on behalf of Bangladesh, China, India, 
Lao PDR, Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka, has the honour to notify to Members of the WTO that the 
First Agreement on Trade Negotiations among D eveloping Member Countries of the Economic and 
Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific  (Bangkok Agreement) has been amended as the 
Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement  (APTA) pursuant to Paragraph 4(a) of the 1979 Decision on 
Differential and More Favourable Treatment, Recipr ocity and Fuller Participation of Developing 
Countries  ("Enabling Clause"). 
  The Bangkok Agreement was notified to GA TT on 2 November 1976 in accordance with the 
Enabling Clause.  On 2 November 2005, delega tes from all Participating States of the Bangkok 
Agreement adopted certain amendments to the Bangkok Agreement and agreed to rename the 
Bangkok Agreement as the Asia-Pac ific Trade Agreement (APTA)
1. 
  Bangladesh, India, Lao PDR, Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka authorized  China, on behalf of 
all Participating States, to notify such amendments to the WTO.   
                                                     
 
1 The text and annexes of the amendment of the Bangkok Agreement renamed as Asia-Pacific Trade 
Agreement (APTA) is being circul ated as document WT/COMTD/62. WT/COMTD/N/22 
Page 2  
 
  ANNEX 
NOTIFICATION OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENT 
1. Member(s) notifying: 
China 
2. Date of notification: 
15 May 2007  
3. Notification pursuant to: 
[   ] Article XXIV:7(a) of GATT 1994 
[   ] Article V:7(a) of GATS 
[ X ] Paragraph 4(a) of the Enabling Clause 
4. Parties to the Agreement: 
Six:  Bangladesh, China, India, Lao PDR, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka 
5. Date of signature: 
2 November 2005 
6. Date(s) of entry into Force: 
1 September 2006 
7. Brief description of the Agreement: 
The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) is an amendment to an existing regional trade 
agreement – First Agreement on Trade Nego tiations among Developing Member Countries 
of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Bangkok Agreement), 
which was notified to GATT on 2 November 1976.  It is Asia-Pacific's oldest preferential 
trade agreement between developing countries a nd aims at promoting regional trade through 
an exchange of mutually-agreed concessions.  
This amendment reflects changes in the interna tional trading system that have taken place 
since the Agreement was first established.  It is also one of the measures undertaken as part 
of the revitalization process initiated in 2001.  Based on Annex I of the amendment, the 
Third Round of tariff concessions which en tered into force on 1 September 2006 cover 
4,270 products (plus 587 for LDCs), with a average margin of preference of 26.8% 
(58.8% for LDCs).  
8. Text and related schedules, annexes and protocols are: 
[ X ] submitted to the WTO Secretariat (electronic format) 
[ X ] available from the following official Internet link(s): 
http://www.unescap.org/tid/apta.asp  and http://www.unescap.org/tid/aptiad/   
 
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