RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/COMTD/M/67 
31 January 2008 
 
 (08-0454) 
Committee on Trade and Development 
Sixty-Seventh Session  
 
 
 
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 4 DECEMBER 2007 
 
Chairman:  H.E. Mr. Shree B.C. Servansing (Mauritius) 
 
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA .........................................................................................................2  
B. OBSERVERS ............................................................................................................................... ...2 
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers ...............................................................................2  
(ii) Further consideration of the requests for observer status by the League of Arab 
States, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf 
Organization for Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Internationale de la 
Francophonie, the Common Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) and th e Groupe de la Banque Africaine de 
Développement.................................................................................................................. ..........2
 
C. DECLINING TERMS OF TRADE FOR PRIMARY COMMODITIES , AND ITS IMPLICATION TO 
TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT OF PRIMARY COMMODITY EXPORTING COUNTRIES ........................3  
- PRESENTATION BY NESTLÉ ..........................................................................................................3  
D. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE .........................................................................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM BRAZIL ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
(WT/COMTD/57/A DD.1)....................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM CHINA ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.2)....................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM INDIA ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.3)....................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM PAKISTAN ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.4)....................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES – RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS 
SUBMITTED BY BRAZIL , CHINA , INDIA AND PAKISTAN ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED 
SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
(WT/COMTD/57/A DD.5)...............................................................................................................6  
- COMMUNICATION FROM THE UNITED STATES ON THE NOTIFICATION BY CHINA OF THE 
AMENDMENT TO THE FIRST AGREEMENT ON TRADE NEGOTIATIONS AMONG 
DEVELOPING MEMBER COUNTRIES OF TH E ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR 
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC (BANGKOK AGREEMENT ) (WT/COMTD/62/A DD.1) .................................7  
- GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES – NOTIFICATION BY THE UNITED STATES 
(WT/COMTD/N/1/A DD.5).............................................................................................................9  
- PROCEDURES IN THE CTD TO CONSIDER NEWLY -NOTIFIED REGIONAL TRADE 
AGREEMENTS – STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN ......................................................................10  WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 2  
 
  E.
 DECISION ON TRANSPARENCY FOR PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS (WT/L/672 ) .........10  
F. PARAGRAPH 51 OF THE DOHA DECLARATION ON IDENTIFYING AND DEBATING 
DEVELOPMENTAL ASPECTS OF THE NEGOTIATIONS , IN ORDER TO HELP ACHIEVE THE 
OBJECTIVE OF HAVING SUSTAINABLE DEV ELOPMENT APPROPRIATELY REFLECTED 
(WT/COMTD/W/143/R EV.3) .......................................................................................................11  
G. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTA TION OF THE HONG KONG DECISION ON DUTY -
FREE AND QUOTA -FREE MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST -DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ........................11  
H. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES  IN THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM 
(WT/COMTD/W/162 ) .................................................................................................................12  
I. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT 2007  (WT/COMTD/W/163 )..................................................................14  
J. OTHER BUSINESS .......................................................................................................................15  
 
 A. 
ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA  
1. The Chairman  said that the draft agenda for the 67th Session of the Committee on Trade and 
Development (CTD) was contained in document WTO/AIR/3121/Rev.1 issued on 
29 November 2007.  
2. The agenda was adopted . 
B. OBSERVERS  
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers 
3. The Chairman  recalled that at previous sessions of the CTD, Members agreed to invite a 
number of intergovernmental organizations on an ad  hoc, meeting-by-meeting basis.  These included 
the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), th e Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), the 
Inter-Arab Investment Guarantee Corporation, th e Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the African 
Union (AU), the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the South Centre, the Pacific Islands 
Forum, the United Nations Environment Progra mme (UNEP), the West African Economic and 
Monetary Union (WAEMU) and the World Intellectua l Property Organization (WIPO).  He said that, 
following the decision taken at the previous meeti ng of the Committee, the organizations had been 
invited to the present meeting.  He proposed that the organizations be invited to the next formal 
meeting of the CTD. 
4. It was so agreed
. 
(ii) Further consideration of the requests for observer status by the League of Arab States, the 
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Int ernationale de la Francophonie, the Common 
Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) and the Groupe de la Banque Africaine de Développement 
5. The Chairman
 said that at previous meetings, the Committee had had before it a number of 
requests for observer status.  He said that if there was no change in positions to extend observer status 
to any of those applicants, then the Committee would take note and would revert to those requests at 
the next meeting.    WT/COMTD/M/67 
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  6. It was so agreed . 
C. DECLINING TERMS OF TRADE FOR PRIMARY COMMODITIES , AND ITS IMPLICATION TO TRADE 
AND DEVELOPMENT OF PRIMARY COMMODITY EXPORTING COUNTRIES  
 - PRESENTATION BY NESTLÉ  
7. The Chairman  recalled that the Committee had agreed at its 64th Session that the Secretariat 
would explore the possibility  of inviting a relevant private sector  organization to make a presentation 
to the CTD.  In this regard, he had informed the Committee at its 65th Session that the Secretariat had 
established contact with a number of private sector  organizations.  He was now pleased to inform 
Members that Nestlé – one of the organizations the Secretariat had established contact with – had 
agreed to make a presentation on its work and experiences with commod ities.  He introduced 
Mr. Herbert Oberhänsli, Assistant Vice President a nd Head of Economics & International Relations at 
Nestlé. 
8. The representative of Nestlé  said that the origins of Nestlé could be traced back to 1866.  
Switzerland at the time was the poorest country in Europe, with the cheapest labour and an infant 
mortality rate of 30 per cent – a figure well above th e current mortality rates in the poorest developing 
countries.  American investment in Switzerland in th at year led to the establishment of the company, 
which initially focused on milk products.  Thanks to relatively low levels of protectionism in 
neighboring European countries, the company was able  to export much of its output.  Soon after, the 
company began investing in other countries.  The first investment in a developing country was in Brazil in 1922, which served as the link to Nestlé's diversification into coffee products.  At present, 
Nestlé purchased between 12 to 14 per cent of worl d coffee production, and the same percentage of 
world cocoa production.  The company also pu rchased about 2 per cent of worldwide milk 
production.  He informed the Committee that Nest lé was working with 310,000 farmers across the 
world, who supplied the company with milk.  The bigg est suppliers were in Pakistan and India, where 
about 100,000 farmers were linked to the company.  
9. He said that the company was continuously e xploring ways to improve quality for the 
consumer, which also helped to improve the ou tlook for farmers.  One of the initiatives of the 
company was to pay farmers more for milk with a lower bacteriological status.  A team from Nestlé 
was assisting farmers to increase the quality of thei r milk in this regard.  In the area of cocoa 
production, he cited Nestlé's "C hocolat Dégustation" as an example of a high-quality product.  
Another example of a high-quality Nestlé product was "Nespresso", which was roasted and ground 
coffee placed in a sealed capsule.  He explained that in order to be able to differentiate the taste of 
coffee, it was firstly necessary to help farmers improv e the quality of their output.  With appropriate 
assistance, farmers could charge a higher price for th eir better quality output.  He said that it was also 
necessary for Nestlé to improve its industrial proces sing of the farmers' output.  In this regard, he 
emphasized the complexity of coffee as a substance.   Nestlé had found that roasted coffee contained 
over 600 different flavours. It was, therefore, important to stop thinking of coffee simply as a 
commodity.  There was still a huge potential to de velop differentiated coffe e products and bring new 
and innovative forms of coffee to markets worldwid e.  He acknowledged, however, that trade barriers 
of various kinds continued to hinder the moveme nt of goods across borders.  He highlighted in 
particular the existence of certain types of non- tariff measures, including requirements relating to 
product standards.   
10. With regard to the current high prices of certain  commodities, he believed that this situation 
could not last, at least partly because expected pr oductivity increases would eventually be translated 
into price decreases.  He also believed that commodity price volatility would not lessen in the 
foreseeable future.  In this rega rd, he suggested that issues concerning earnings stabilization should be 
seriously considered at the global level.  He explai ned that in a situation where prices fell, the normal WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 4  
 
  response in order to raise prices would be to reduce supply.  However, in poorer countries in need of 
income, supply was often increased, causing prices to fall even lower.  An earnings stabilization 
programme could help to stabilize prices in such circumstances. 
11. He next turned to discuss water, which he s uggested was perhaps the most valuable of all 
commodities.  He said that the rapid rise in wa ter consumption for agricultural purposes that was 
being observed in some parts of the world was at leas t partly due to the heavy subsidization of water.  
According to one estimate, complete liberalization of the water market would reduce water consumption for agriculture by abou t 10 per cent.  He also indicated  that there were large areas of 
rain-fed agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa that were currently under-utilized, and suggested that, 
along with a decrease of water subsidies in some parts of the world, increased agricultural production 
in Sub-Saharan Africa could poten tially open up trading opportunities for countries in that region.  He 
emphasized the need for care to be take n in the worldwide usage of water.  
12. In conclusion, he said that Nestlé was very much in favour of liberalizing the agricultural 
sector and agricultural trade.  The company also had little sympathy for heavily subsidized biofuel 
production, since high biofuel production was causi ng food prices to rise, with serious negative 
effects for consumers.  He believed that agricu ltural liberalization would provide more opportunities 
for differentiation between commodity-based products on the basis of quality.  
13. The Chairman
 opened the floor for questions and comments. 
14. The representative of Pakistan  asked whether the Nestlé representative could provide  
information on the company's initiatives to increase th e quality of various commodities, and how this 
impacted on farmers. 
15. The representative of the European Communities  said that imports of powdered milk had a 
number of positive effects for the importing country,  including notably the greater availability of 
cheaper milk for consumers.  At the same time , he observed that in some cases the competition 
provided by imports of powdered milk could have a negative impact on local milk producers.  He 
asked whether Nestlé had addressed this issue. 
16. The representative of Egypt  asked the Nestlé representative for his views on the extent to 
which there was scope for farmers in developing  countries to add value in their production.  
17. The representative of Cuba  wondered whether the experiences of a company such as Nestlé 
were useful for the CTD's discussion on commoditi es, in particular since these experiences were 
extremely difficult to reproduce in developing countries.  He suggested that it might be more useful for the CTD to hear from companies with more rele vant experience.  With regard to the Nestlé 
representative's comments on infant mortality in developing countries today, he said that his 
delegation was very familiar with the actual figur es.  He indicated that 500 children under five years 
of age died every day in Africa. In Latin America and the Caribbean, infant mortality was on average 27 per thousand born.  In some countries in that region, the infant mortality was more than 60 per thousand.  Referring to some well-known paradoxes highlighted in the literature on 
commodities, he observed that many cocoa producer s in Africa did not even know what a bar of 
chocolate looked like.  Furthermore, while producer s of coffee were suffering due to low prices on 
global markets, a cup of coffee in industrialized countries remained relatively highly priced.  He remarked that it was mainly the enterprises that  processed and packaged commodity-based products 
that were gaining, and asked what could be done to help farmers under these circumstances. 
18. The Chairman
 said that he had informed the Committee at its 65th Session of the companies 
that the Secretariat had established contact with.  Suggestions from Members of other companies that 
the CTD could possibly hear from were welcome.  He  asked whether the Nestlé representative could  WT/COMTD/M/67 
 Page 5 
 
 
  elaborate on his views concerning the future direction of commodity prices, particularly in light of the 
current international focus on the environmen t and the need for clean energy sources.   
19. The representative of Nestlé  said that there were a number of factors that could impact on the 
prices of commodities.  The extent of subsidizati on of any particular commodity was one important 
factor.  The increasing prosperity of some developi ng countries, which translated into higher demand 
for commodities, was another factor, as were issues surrounding productivity.  He also referred to his 
earlier comments regarding biofuels, and emphasized th at a true environmental approach must take a 
holistic view.  For example, Nestlé considered th at the issues surrounding water usage had not as yet 
been fully addressed at the international level.   With regard to the comments made by the 
representative of Cuba, he explained that the main message he had wanted to get across in quoting an 
infant mortality figure for Switzerland was that the country had been very poor in the 1860s, and had 
benefited from investment and from open markets in  neighboring countries.  He agreed with the 
representative of Cuba that it was difficult to repli cate Nestlé's initiatives, si nce the company always 
tried to do things differently.  This did not, how ever, mean that others could not benefit from 
opportunities in the global food market.  There was always place for new ideas and new ways of 
presenting products to consumers. 
20. He next addressed the question of what the private sector could do to help farmers in 
developing countries.  He said that it was firstly impor tant to invest in the countries concerned and to 
buy the products of the local farmers.  Helping farmers increase their productivity and the quality of 
their products was another important aspect.  It was along these lines that Nestlé and other private 
sector institutions could contribute.  Nestlé had f actories in about 80 countries worldwide, and its 
agricultural advisors were in direct contact with farm ers.  He believed that there was scope for farmers 
to increase value in their production, but suggested that farmers would likely only benefit from this if 
there was recognition from consumers of that added value.  He informed th e Committee that Nestlé 
was now producing more than 50 per cent of basic soluble coffee in developing countries.  This was 
then exported in bulk to various d estinations and blended according to local tastes.  He noted that 
tariff escalation remained an issue in this regard, and that the elimination of tariff escalation would 
allow more production to take place in developing count ries.  On the subject of initiatives by Nestlé to 
increase quality, he referred to the examples he  had provided earlier conc erning milk and coffee 
production, and added that while the final goal of quality improvement was to satisfy consumers, both 
Nestlé and the farmers could benefit in the process.  Finally, on the question from the EC representative, he said he agreed that imports of powdered milk could negatively impact local 
producers.  While Nestlé had set up milk factorie s for local production and consumption in several 
countries, he explained that it was not possible to esta blish a factory if the local market was too small. 
Generally, however, it was estimated that only about 10 per cent of Nestlé's finished products crossed 
borders.   
21. The Committee took note
 of the presentation by Nestlé, and of all interventions. 
22. The Chairman  said that he wished to gain a better idea from Members as to how the CTD  
could continue to add value in its discussion on comm odities.  He proposed to consult informally with 
some delegations, and report back to the Committee at its next meeting. 
23. It was so agreed .   WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 6  
 
  D. 
NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE  
- COMMUNICATION FROM BRAZIL ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.1) 
- COMMUNICATION FROM CHINA ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.2) 
- COMMUNICATION FROM INDIA ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.3) 
- COMMUNICATION FROM PAKISTAN ON TH E REVISED GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF 
PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (WT/COMTD/57/A DD.4) 
- COMMUNICATION FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES – RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS 
SUBMITTED BY BRAZIL , CHINA , INDIA AND PAKISTAN ON THE REVISED GENERALIZED 
SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES SCHEME OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
(WT/COMTD/57/A DD.5) 
24. The Chairman  recalled that the EC had notified its revised Generalized System of Preferences 
(GSP) scheme at the 57th Session of the CTD.  Communications raising questions on the EC's revised 
GSP scheme had been received from Brazil, China, India and Pakistan and were circulated in 
documents WT/COMTD/57/Add.1 to Add.4, respectivel y.  The EC's responses to the questions were 
circulated in document WT/COMTD/57/Add.5.  It ha d been agreed at the last CTD meeting that he 
would continue with his informal consultations on this matter and would report back to the 
Committee.  In this regard, he reported that his consultations had allowed some progress to be made 
on the matter, but it also appeared that more cons ultations, and more time, would be required before 
this item could be taken off the CTD's agenda.  He  inquired whether any Member wished to take the 
floor.  
25. The representative of Brazil  said that the relevant authorities in Brazil were still in the process 
of reviewing the information that had been provide d by the EC.  A preliminary consideration of the 
information had, however, indicated that it did not re spond to Brazil's needs.  He requested that this 
item remain on the agenda for the next CTD meeting.  
26. The representative of Pakistan  said that her delegation was still waiting for responses from the 
EC to the second set of questions from Pakistan that had been submitted in November 2006.  Her 
delegation would be in a better position to consider how to move  forward on this matter once the 
responses were provided.   
27. The representative of the European Communities  said that his delegation was in the process 
of finalizing its responses to the second set of ques tions from Pakistan.  He also indicated that his 
delegation had done all it could to  address the concerns raised by Brazil, and had already provided 
what it believed were satisfactory responses.    
28. The Chairman  said that he would continue with his informal consultations, and would report 
back to the CTD at the next meeting. The item w ould, therefore, remain on the CTD's agenda.   
29. It was so agreed .  WT/COMTD/M/67 
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  - COMMUNICATION FROM THE UNITED STATES ON THE NOTIFICATION BY CHINA OF THE 
AMENDMENT TO THE FIRST AGREEMENT ON TRADE NEGOTIATIONS AMONG DEVELOPING MEMBER COUNTRIES OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC 
(BANGKOK AGREEMENT ) (WT/COMTD/62/A DD.1) 
30. The Chairman  recalled that China, on behalf of the Participating States of the Asia-Pacific 
Trade Agreement (APTA), had introduced a notification at the 65th Session of the CTD concerning 
the Amendment to the First Agreement on Tr ade Negotiations Among Developing Members 
Countries of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Bangkok Agreement).  A communication from the United States raising questi ons on the notification had subsequently been 
circulated in document WT/COMTD/62/Add.1.  He  invited the US represen tative to introduce the 
communication.    
31. The representative of the United States
 thanked the parties to the agreement for the 
information that had been provided on APTA.  She welcomed the notification and the opportunity to 
discuss the amendments to the agre ement.  She said that her dele gation had submitted questions on 
APTA in order to enable a meaningful discu ssion of the agreement.  Her delegation sought 
clarification on the coverage and margins of preferences, among other issues.  She requested that this 
item remain on the agenda for th e next CTD meeting, pending replies from the parties to the 
agreement.  Her delegation trusted that the re plies would be circulated as a CTD document. 
32. The representative of China , on behalf of the Participating States of APTA, said that the 
documents concerning the notification had been circ ulated in July 2007, but that no WTO Member 
had made comments on the notification until its formal consideration by the CTD at the 65th Session.  
At that meeting, the US delegation had indicat ed that it would submit written questions on the 
notification.  He, however, observed that the ques tions from the US had only been received five 
working days before the present meeting.  Therefor e, while the Participating States of APTA thanked 
the US for the questions – which aimed at clarifying some of the provisions of the agreement – he said 
that only preliminary responses c ould be provided at the present m eeting.  Written answers would 
follow. 
33. In response to the question by the US concerning the authority under which the Bangkok 
Agreement was originally notified, he said that  the Bangkok Agreement was notified to the GATT on 
2 November 1976, in line with the obligations of Contracting Parties under Part IV of GATT, in 
particular the principles and objectives contained in Article XXXVI and the commitments reflected in Article XXXVII:4.  A Decision – contained in document L/4653 – was taken in this regard on 
14 March 1978.  The agreement was subsequently considered as notified under the Enabling Clause 
of 1979, which had a provision similar to Article XXXVII:4 of GATT.  With regard to the question 
concerning the Participating States' rationale for notifying APTA under the Enabling Clause – in 
particular in light of the notification of th e Korea-Chile Free Trade Agreement (FTA) under GATT 
Article XXIV – he said that WTO rules did not prevent a developing country from notifying an 
agreement under Article XXIV.  He indicated that the representative of Korea would shortly provide a 
more detailed response on this point. 
34. He next turned to the questions concerning the percentage of trade and tariff lines that were 
covered by the new consolidated tariff list, and th e actual utilization rates for APTA preferences.  He 
explained that the concessions agreed under the ne w consolidated list had only been effective since 
1 September 2006, and that the short time that had elapsed since then was insufficient to obtain a 
definitive picture of the implementation of the co ncessions.  APTA Participating States were still 
consulting and coordinating on issu es concerning trade coverage and u tilization rates, and data were 
not available at present for all Participating States.   In response to the question concerning the average 
margin of preference (MOP) provided by APTA members under the agreement, he said that Bangladesh's average MOP on its concessions after th e conclusion of the Third Round of negotiations WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 8  
 
  was 14.1 per cent.  For the other Participating States – China, India, Korea and Sri Lanka – the 
average MOP on general concessions were 26.7 per cent, 23.9 per cent, 35.4 per cent and 14 per cent 
respectively.  The average MOP on the special c oncessions offered by these four countries to LDC 
Participating States were 77.9 per cent, 39.7 per cent,  64.6 per cent and 12 per cent respectively.  The 
average MOP for all Participating States on genera l concessions was 26.8 per cent, while the average 
MOP for Participating States' special concessions to LDCs was 58.8 percent.      
35. With regard to the questions concerning the pr eservation of preference margins, he said that 
APTA Ministers had agreed at the second meeting of the APTA Ministerial Council to launch the 
Fourth Round of negotiations on tariff reduction.  However, APTA Participating States would not be 
required to renegotiate concessions in the event of  a successful completion of the Doha Round, as the 
tariff concessions were offered on a MOP basis to the applied tariff rate on the date of importation.  
There was, therefore, no linkage between these con cessions and the outcome of the Doha Round.  He 
added that APTA Participating States were not required to renegotiate their concessions to one 
another when any of the parties entered into other reciprocal preferential arrangements.  Article 14 of 
the agreement made specific reference to this point. 
36. On the question concerning the extent to which concessions provi ded in the revised 
agreement could overlap with concessions prov ided through other reciprocal preferential 
arrangements involving APTA parties, he said that each agreement was different, and the 
commitments provided under each were independent .  With regard to the questions concerning 
non-tariff barriers, he confirmed that no initiativ es had been taken up to now within the APTA 
framework to negotiate non-tariff measures.  No lists of such measures had, therefore, been 
exchanged by APTA Participating States.  Moving on to the questions concerning provisions for new 
APTA members, he referred to Article 30 of the agreement, which stated that APTA was open for 
accession by any developing country member of  the United Nations Economic and Social 
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).  The agreement did not contain provisions for 
accession by other developing countries outside the ESC AP region.  He also informed the Committee 
that no countries were currently in the process of  accession, though a number – approximately ten, 
according to information provided by ESCAP – had dem onstrated interest in this regard.  Finally, he 
expressed his hope that the information provided would help WTO Members to better understand 
APTA, and that the CTD's consideration of the notification could be concluded soon. 
37. The representative of Korea
 highlighted that APTA was not a new agreement.  Rather, it was 
an amendment to the existing Bangkok Agreement, which had already been recognized by WTO 
Members as a regional trade agreement (RTA) notif ied under the Enabling Clause.  As an original 
member of the Bangkok Agreement, Korea had b een participating in the agreement since its 
establishment in 1976.  It was the understanding of his delegation that the amendment of the agreement did not require any change in the status of its member countries.  He added that there was 
no provision in the WTO Agreements that preven ted developing country Members of the WTO from 
using either GATT Article XXIV or the Enabling Clau se as the basis for their RTA notifications.  His 
delegation, therefore, did not see any legal c onflict in notifying the Korea-Chile FTA under GATT 
Article XXIV while maintaining membership in AP TA.  If Members sought any further clarification, 
his delegation was willing to provide its responses in written form. 
38. The Chairman
 inquired whether the US delegation w as satisfied with the responses that had 
been provided by China and Korea, or whether it w ould like the item to remain on the CTD's agenda 
until written responses were submitted.    
39. The representative of the United States  expressed her appreciation for the responses that had 
been provided by China and Korea.  She requested that the item remain on the CTD's agenda until her 
delegation had time to consider the responses in writte n form.  In view of the level of transparency  WT/COMTD/M/67 
 Page 9 
 
 
  that had been demonstrated by the notifying Memb ers, she believed that the CTD's consideration of 
the APTA notification could be completed quickly.     
40. The Chairman  proposed that this item remain on the agenda for the next CTD meeting, 
pending receipt of written responses from the APTA Participating States.   
41. It was so agreed . 
- GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES – NOTIFICATION BY THE UNITED STATES 
(WT/COMTD/N/1/A DD.5) 
42. The Chairman  said that the notification by the US concerning its GSP scheme was circulated 
in document WT/COMTD/N/1/Add.5.  He invite d the US representative to introduce the 
communication. 
43. The representative of the United States  said that her delegation was pleased to have the 
opportunity to present its notification concer ning the 2006 Annual Review of the US GSP 
programme, which had been completed in June 2007.  Efforts to foster the further integration of 
developing countries into the multilateral trading system  were a vital part of US trade policy.  US 
efforts spanned a number of fronts, including pr omoting broad-based multilateral trade reforms 
conducive to further integration, supporting integration of trade stra tegies into the development plans 
of national authorities, and providing significant amounts of capacity-building assistance.  A longstanding element in US efforts to increase devel oping country participation in the global trading 
system was the provision of duty-free access for products from beneficiary developing countries entering the US  market.  The US GSP programme, in operation since 1975, was a cornerstone of that 
effort.  
44. She said that the US GSP programme provided preferential duty-free treatment for 
approximately 3,400 products from the 131 currently designated beneficiary countries and territories.  
As the statute did not allow less than full ta riff reductions, duty-free be nefits were the only 
preferential tariff treatment provided under the GSP programme.  An additional 1,400 articles 
received duty-free treatment when supplied by l east-developed, beneficiary developing countries 
(LDBDCs).  There were 43 LDBDCs currently eligible  for GSP benefits.  She also noted that a single, 
transparent rule-of-origin regime governed all US imports under the GSP.  In the 2006 review, the US 
granted waivers to the statutory "competitive need  limitations" to ensure continued GSP duty-free 
benefits to certain products.  These were noted in Annex I and Annex II of the notification.  
Annexes III and IV of the review identified those specific products from specific beneficiary countries 
for which GSP eligibility was terminated or revoked based on a determination that imports from those 
beneficiary countries could compete effectively in th e US market.  The review also yielded decisions 
on products being redesignated as eligible for du ty-free treatment under the GSP programme, which 
could be found in Annex V.   
45. She informed the Committee th at the notification also provided the publicly accessible 
website where the results of the 2006 GSP Annual Revi ew could be viewed.  She highlighted that US 
trade data at virtually any level of aggregation was freely available in eas y-to-use formats. This 
enabled users to run their own customized queries on product and country specific trade – including utilization under preference programmes.  She clo sed by saying that while her delegation recognized 
the successes of the US GSP programme – which covered over US$32 billion in imports in 2006, an 
increase of 22 per cent over 2005 – it was also committed to continue working to improve the 
effectiveness of US efforts to integrate developing countries more fully into the global trading system. 
46. The Committee took note
 of the notification by the US. WT/COMTD/M/67 
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  - 
PROCEDURES IN THE CTD TO CONSIDER NEWLY -NOTIFIED REGIONAL TRADE 
AGREEMENTS – STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN  
47. The Chairman  said that the General Council had adopted on 14 December 2006 a decision – 
contained in document WT/L/671 – establishing, on a provisional basis, a "Transparency Mechanism 
for Regional Trade Agreements".  The CTD had b een instructed to impl ement the Transparency 
Mechanism for agreements falling under paragraph 2(c)  of the Enabling Clause.  In this regard, he 
informed the Committee that a submission con cerning a newly-notified RTA under the Enabling 
Clause had been received.  The notification relate d to the agreement between the Arab Republic of 
Egypt and the Republic of Turkey.  It had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/N/23, using the 
notification format that the CTD adopted at its 62nd Session.  This followed the procedure being used 
in the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA).  
48. He informed Members that the Secretariat would prepare a factual presentation of the 
Egypt-Turkey RTA once the required data was received from the notifying Members. The RTA would be considered in dedicated session of the CTD, essentially following the same procedures used 
by the CRTA in its consideration of RTAs.  These included the requirement for Members to transmit 
written questions or comments at least six weeks be fore the meeting, and the distribution of these 
questions/comments – together with replies – at l east three working days before the meeting.  The 
consideration of the RTA would be normally concl uded in a period not exceeding one year after the 
date of notification, which in this case was 5 Oc tober 2007.  He also proposed that all future 
submissions concerning newly-notified RTAs under th e Enabling Clause be considered by the CTD 
following these procedures. 
49. It was so agreed
.    
E. DECISION ON TRANSPARENCY FOR PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS (WT/L/672 ) 
50. The Chairman  said that the 14 December 2006 Gene ral Council Decision on "Transparency 
for Preferential Trade Arrangements" – contai ned in document WT/L/672 – invited the CTD to 
consider transparency for preferential arrangement s under paragraph 2 of the Enabling Clause – other 
than RTAs – and report back within six months for appropriate action by the General Council.  At its 
July 2007 meeting, the Council had extended the dead line to its December 2007 meeting.  He recalled 
that the Committee at its 65th Session had considered a "non-paper" by the proponents – Brazil and 
India – which was circulated in document JOB(07) /142.  A number of Members had made comments 
on various aspects of the non-paper, and he had suggested that the proponents start thinking about revising and updating its content.  He informed the Committee that since that meeting, he had 
consulted informally with a number of Members on the basis of a more complete draft text prepared 
by Brazil and India.  While this had allowed importa nt progress to be made on the matter, he  believed 
that more time and more work – in both formal a nd informal settings – woul d be required before the 
CTD could come to a decision.  He inquired whethe r the proponents wished to take the floor at this 
point. 
51. The representative of Brazil
 confirmed the accuracy of the Chairman's report on the status of 
the matter, and also agreed that more time was requi red before the CTD could come to a decision.  He 
requested that this item remain on the agenda for the CTD's next meeting.    
52. The representative of India  associated himself with the interv ention by Brazil.  His delegation 
looked forward to working with Members to establis h an appropriate transparency mechanism in the 
WTO for the consideration of preferential trade arrangements.   
53. The Chairman  said that he would need to report to the General Council at its December 2007 
meeting on the status of the CTD's consideration of this matter.  He said that he would inform the  WT/COMTD/M/67 
 Page 11 
 
 
  Council of the important progress that had been made to date, and would essentially provide the 
Council with the same information that had been  provided to the Committee at the present meeting.  
He proposed to also ask the Council to grant the CTD additional time – until July 2008 – to consider 
the matter and report back for appropriate action.  He said that he would also continue with his 
informal consultations in early 2008, and would open the matter up for discussion once again at the 
next formal meeting of the CTD.  The item w ould, therefore, remain on the CTD's agenda. 
54. It was so agreed . 
F. PARAGRAPH 51 OF THE DOHA DECLARATION ON IDENTIFYING AND DEBATING 
DEVELOPMENTAL ASPECTS OF THE NEGOTIATIONS , IN ORDER TO HELP ACHIEVE THE 
OBJECTIVE OF HAVING SUSTAINABLE DE VELOPMENT APPROPRIATELY REFLECTED 
(WT/COMTD/W/143/R EV.3) 
55. The Chairman  said that, under this agenda item, the Committee had since its 54th Session been 
undertaking a review of the developmental aspects of the negotiations based on a periodically updated 
background paper prepared by the Secretariat.  It ha d been agreed at the last meeting that discussion 
would continue under this agenda item at the presen t meeting, based on the third revision of the 
Secretariat paper, contained in document WT/C OMTD/W/143/Rev.3.  He inquired whether any 
Member wished to take the floor. 
56. No Member took the floor.  
57. The Chairman  noted that no Member had taken the floor, which had also been the case at the 
last CTD meeting when this item was on the agenda .  He, therefore, proposed that the item be taken 
off the CTD's agenda for the time being.  It w ould be put back on the agenda upon request by any 
Member.  
58. It was so agreed . 
G. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HONG KONG DECISION ON DUTY -FREE 
AND QUOTA -FREE MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST -DEVELOPED COUNTRIES  
59. The Chairman  said that an item concerning the Hong Kong Decision on duty-free and 
quota-free (DFQF) market access for LDCs had been on the CTD's agenda for its earlier meetings in 
2007.  Written communications from the US and Canada  had been considered by the Committee.  He 
said that, at the present meeting, the CTD was to undertake its second annual review of the 
implementation of the Hong Kong Decision, as mand ated in Annex F of the Hong Kong Ministerial 
Declaration.  
60. The representative of Bangladesh  expressed appreciation for the developed countries that had 
already provided DFQF market access to LDCs and fulfilled their obligations under the Hong Kong 
Decision.  The LDCs continued to be engaged with those countries on other relevant issues, including 
the simplification of rules of origin.  He also a ppreciated the willingness of some developing countries 
to provide DFQF market access to LDCs, and ca lled on developing countries to provide further 
market access to LDCs. 
61. He noted that some developed countries were currently involved in domestic procedures to 
ascertain their ability to implement the Hong Kong mandate, and expresse d understanding that 
domestic procedures were complicated in all countries.  He said that the LDCs appreciated the sincere 
efforts made by the US Government in this regard .  He informed the Committee that, in reply to a 
request from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) for written comments on DFQF market access, the LDC Group in Geneva had submitted comments electronically in March 2007.  The USTR WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 12  
 
  had then asked the United States International Tr ade Commission (USITC) to conduct a study and to 
provide advice to the USTR "as to the probable economic effect of providing DFQF treatment for 
imports of LDCs on (i) industries in the United St ates producing like or directly competitive products 
and (ii) consumers".  Following a separate noti ce for submission of comme nts, the LDC Group had 
made a submission to the USITC in April 2007.  He  noted that the USITC had submitted the report to 
the USTR in August 2007, and that the report was s till confidential.  The LDCs were interested in 
learning of the content of the report.  
62. He referred to his recent meeting with the US Ambassador, and said that both sides were 
working together to find a way to operationalize th e 97 per cent commitment.  He said that the US 
Ambassador had indicated that 97 per cent was th e minimum benchmark, and could be extended to 
100 per cent depending on the country and product.  It had also been agreed that the Hong Kong 
Decision should be implemented in such a way as to  provide meaningful market access to all LDCs, 
as had been the intention of Ministers at the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference.  He expressed the interest of the LDCs in general, and Bangladesh in particular, to engage more proactively with 
developed countries on the DFQF issue, particularly in light of the discussion that had taken place at 
the last informal meeting of the Trade Negotiations Committee. 
63. The representative the United States
 said that the last communication by the US under the 
CTD's agenda item concerning the Hong Kong Decisi on contained the most recent information on US 
efforts to implement the Decision.  The US intended to implement the Decision with the results of the 
Doha Round.   
64. The Committee took note  of all interventions. 
H. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM 
(WT/COMTD/W/162 ) 
65. The Chairman  said that the CTD had a mandate to keep under continuous review the 
participation of developing country Members in th e multilateral trading system.  He recalled that it 
had been agreed at the 65th Session that the CTD's discussion under this agenda item would take place 
at the present meeting, based on a background paper prepared by the Secretariat.  He invited the 
Secretariat to briefly introduce the paper, which had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/162. 
66. The Chief Statistician
 said that the global economic recovery in recent years, in particular in 
the period from 2003 to 2006, was reflected in higher GDP growth for developing countries as a group, as well as in a strong trade performance.  Th e period was marked by higher prices for primary 
products, especially fuels and minerals, which wa s a driver for developing country merchandise 
exports.  At the same time, the higher prices also impacted positively on the demand for imports of 
primary products by developing countries.  This was not only due to the fact that many developing 
countries were net importers of fuels and minerals, but was also because the higher export revenues of 
fuel exporters increased their capacity to import.  With regard to manufactured exports, he observed 
that their continuing strong growth was most noticea ble in Asia, and particularly in China.  He went 
on to say that the share of the five largest devel oping country exporters in world merchandise exports 
had increased between 2000 and 2006, while the share of the 50 smallest exporters had decreased over 
the same period.  
67. He informed the Committee that developing countries as a group had experienced a 
merchandise trade surplus in the period under analysis .  The trend towards an overall surplus in the 
merchandise trade balance of de veloping countries had been observed since 1999.  The trend could 
also be observed in each individual developing region.  The Middle East and Africa, which tended to specialize in oil and mineral exports, were at present showing the biggest trade surpluses. He  WT/COMTD/M/67 
 Page 13 
 
 
  observed, however, that the trade balance positi ons of individual developing countries differed 
depending on their export specialization.  For example, an oil exporter like the Libyan Arab 
Jamahiriya had a trade surplus of 65 per cent of GD P in 2006, while Jordan registered a 44 per cent 
trade deficit.  
68. He said that services trade had grown less rapidly than goods trade in the period under 
analysis, due mainly to price factors.  He explai ned that services trade was less affected by cyclical 
changes in prices than some categories of goods.  He  added that the share of developing countries in 
commercial services exports was less than their share in merchandise exports.  In particular, the share 
of developing countries in world merchandise exports presently stood at 36 per cent, while their share 
in services exports was 26 per cent.  Over the period under analysis, however, the share of developing 
countries in world commercial services exports had in creased, with developing Asia registering the 
largest increase.  An in crease in the export share of developing countries had also been observed for 
each identified category of commercial services.  He informed the Committee that Korea was the 
largest developing country exporter of transport ser vices, while China was the largest exporter of 
travel services.  In the "other  commercial services" category, Indi a was the leading exporter, based 
mainly on its strength in software services and other business services. 
69. He referred Members to the relevant tables in  the Secretariat paper for information on the 
merchandise and services trade of particular countries.  He concluded by saying that while the last few 
years had been favourable to developing country e xports, part of this positive trend was due to 
cyclical factors affecting primary products in particul ar.  There was a risk that  an eventual downturn 
in the cycle could impact negatively on the participation of developing countries in global trade.  
70. The Chairman  opened the floor for questions and comments.  
71. The representative of the European Communities  expressed appreciation for the Secretariat 
paper, though observed that the necessity of limiting the analysis to only a few years might not always 
allow the full picture to emerge.  Structural change s, in particular, required a broader analysis.  He 
noted that the paper highlighted an increased partic ipation of developing countries in world trade, 
which was a positive sign.  He also remarked that Africa – with only 9 per cent of exports remaining 
within the region in 2006 – was not very integrated in terms of trade flows. Contrasting the figures for 
Africa with those for developing Asia – where 37 per cent of exports remained within the region – he  
emphasized the potential benefits for African c ountries that could arise from further regional 
integration.  He noted that LDC agricultural exports accounted for only 2 per cent of world 
agricultural trade.  He also observed that there w as a concentration of LDC exports in three sectors, 
namely fuels and minerals, clothing and agricultu re, which accounted respectively for 60 per cent, 
16 per cent and 14 per cent of total LDC exports.  Th is concentration highlighted the need for these 
countries to diversify their exports, as well as the need for other trading nations to address the 
exporting concerns of LDCs.  He noted that rising  fuel prices were a concern to several developing 
countries.  He also noted the potential of tourism as a driver of growth in developing countries.  He 
observed how many developing countries had moved away from traditional exports such as textiles 
and clothing, and into areas such as office and te lecommunications equipment, which he believed was 
a positive development.  Finally, he remarked that  the experiences of certain developing countries had 
shown that WTO membership could help developi ng countries in their efforts to increase their 
participation in world trade.   
72. The representative of Pakistan  expressed concern that between 2000 and 2006 the export 
share of the 50 smallest trading nations had decr eased.  She also inquired on the data sources for 
services trade used by the Secretariat, in particular  since such data for developing countries were 
known to be relatively scarce. WT/COMTD/M/67 
Page 14  
 
  73. The Chief Statistician
 said that the Secretariat would in the next version of the paper try to 
separate structural factors from cyclical factors, t hough this was not always easy to do.  On the issue 
of the participation of LDCs in agricultural trade,  he said that the next review of market access for 
LDC products by the Sub-Committee on LDCs would focu s on LDCs' agricultural trade.  With regard 
to the sources for data on trade in commercial servic es, he explained that the Secretariat mainly relied 
on figures for total exports and total imports from c ountries' balance of payments statistics.  While 
these figures gave a reasonable idea of the flows of services, he recognized that they did not provide 
the full picture.  Generally speaking, existing da ta on services trade were weaker than data on 
merchandise trade.  In this regard, the Secretar iat was working closely with other international 
institutions in order to develop a more complete framework for the reporting of trade in services. 
74. The representative of China  said that the Secretariat paper described many positive aspects of 
the trade of developing countries, but provided ve ry little description of the challenges faced by 
developing countries in the global trading system.  For example, developing countries had problems 
dealing with requirements relating to sanitary a nd phytosanitary measures and technical barriers to 
trade, and generally faced challenges in overcoming supply side constraints.  He suggested that a 
future version of the Secretariat paper could includ e a description of such issues in order to give a 
more comprehensive picture of the participation of developing countries in global trade.   
75. The Committee took note  of the Secretariat paper and of all interventions. 
I. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT 2007  (WT/COMTD/W/163 ) 
76. The Chairman  said that the CTD's draft annual report for 2007 was contained in document 
WT/COMTD/W/163.  The document contained the annua l reports of the CTD in Regular Session, the 
CTD in Dedicated Session and the Sub-Committee on LDCs, as well as the CTD's report of its work 
on Aid for Trade.  He observed that the draft report contained a number of square brackets relating to 
items under consideration at the present meeting, as well as the most recent meeting of the Dedicated 
Session on Small Economies.  As part of the process of adopting the report, the square brackets would 
be removed, and the discussion that took place at th e present meeting would be appropriately reflected 
in the report.  He informed the Committee that th e report, when adopted, would be forwarded to the 
General Council for review at its meeting of 18 December 2007.  He opened the floor for any 
comments on the draft report. 
77. The representative of th e European Communities  suggested that paragraph 14 of the draft 
report, which concerned the Hong Kong Decision on DFQF market access for LDCs, should include a 
reference to Japan's 2007 notification under the En abling Clause of enhanced DFQF market access to 
LDCs. 
78. The representative of China  said that he wished to propose tw o revisions in paragraph 8 of the 
draft report.  He firstly pointed out that the notif ication concerning the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement 
had been made by China on behalf  of the Participating States of A PTA, and suggested that this should 
be appropriately reflected in paragraph 8.  Sec ond, he observed that preliminary responses had been 
provided by China and Korea at the present meeting to  the questions raised by the US on APTA.  He 
believed that this fact should also be reflected in the CTD's report. 
79. The representative of Japan , with regard to the comment by the EC representative on 
paragraph 14 of the draft report, observed that Japan's notification of enhanced DFQF market access 
for LDCs was referred to in the section concerning notifications of market access for developing and 
least-developed countries.  He wondered, however, wh ether it would also be appropriate to refer to 
Japan's notification in the section concerning the Hong Kong Decision on DFQF market access for 
LDCs.  WT/COMTD/M/67 
 Page 15 
 
 
  80. The Chairman  said that the suggested amendments to the draft report would be incorporated 
in the CTD's final report.  He proposed that th e Committee adopt the report with these amendments. 
81. The Committee adopted  its annual report for 2007.1   
J. OTHER BUSINESS  
82. No matter was raised under "Other Business". 
83. The meeting was adjourned . 
 
__________ 
 
 
                                                      
1 The report was issued as document WT/COMTD/64.