WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/C/32 
7 October 2009 
 (09-4848) 
  
  
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES 
TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL (2009) 
 
 1. Since its last report to the General Council, the Council for Trade in Services held three 
formal meetings, on 5 December 2008, 2 April 2009 and 23 June 2009.
1  During this period, the 
Council addressed the following matters. 
I. NOTIFICATIONS MADE TO THE COUNCIL PURSUANT TO GATS 
ARTICLES III:3 AND V:7 
2. At its meetings held on 5 December 2008, 2 April 2009 and 23 June 2009, the Council for 
Trade in Services took note of the following notifications. 
(a) Notifications pursuant to Article III:3 of the GATS 
Republic of Albania S/C/N/452 to 461, S/C/N/485 
Republic of Armenia  S/C/N/464 Switzerland S/C/N/467, S/C/N/474-482 The Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, S/C/N/468  Kinmen and Matsu 
Thailand S/C/N/486-489 
Brazil S/C/N/492-493 Egypt S/C/N/494-496 
 
(b) Notifications pursuant to Article V:7 of the GATS 
Japan and Indonesia  S/C/N/462 
China and Singapore (on behalf of the ASEAN Members) S/C/N/463 Iceland S/C/N/465 Brunei and Japan S/C/N/466 CARIFORUM States and the European Communities S/C/N/469 and Rev.1 China and Hong Kong, China S/C/N/264/Add.2 
Japan and the Philippines S/C/N/470 
Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, S/C/N/471  Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the United States China and Macao, China S/C/N/265/Add.2 The United States and Oman S/C/N/472 
Peru and the United States S/C/N/473 
China and Singapore S/C/N/483 Australia and Chile S/C/N/484 Costa Rica and Panama S/C/N/490 China and New Zealand S/C/N/491 
                                                     
 
1 Reports of the meetings are contained in documents S/C/M/92 to 94, and should be read in 
conjunction with this report. S/C/32 
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II. NOTIFICATION PURSUANT TO GATS ARTICLE XXI 
3. At its meeting on 5 December 2008, the Counc il for Trade in Services considered a 
notification from Bolivia made pursuant to GA TS Article XXI (Modification of schedules).  In 
keeping with the agreed procedure, the exchange of views on this issue is contained in document 
JOB(08)/131. 
III. TRANSITIONAL REVIEW UNDER SECTION 18 OF THE PROTOCOL ON THE 
ACCESSION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 
4. At its meeting held on 5 December 2008, th e Council for Trade in Services conducted and 
concluded the seventh transitional review of the implementation by China of its WTO commitments, 
pursuant to section 18 of the Protocol on the Accession of the People's Republic of China 
(WT/L/432).  The Council took note of the report of  the Committee on Trade in Financial Services 
(S/FIN/21), which formed part of the Council's repo rt on this matter to the General Council, contained 
in document S/C/31. 
IV. FUTURE WORK OF THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES 
5. At its meeting held on 5 December 2008, Members of the Council for Trade in Services 
discussed how best to allocate their time and efforts in the following months.  It was decided that the 
Chairperson would conduct open-ended informal consultations on the issue at the beginning of 2009.  
Following these consultations, Members agreed th at the Council would address the issue of 
compliance with GATS notification requirements and undertake sectoral and modal discussions on the basis of Background Notes prepared by the Secretariat. 
V. COMPLIANCE WITH GATS NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS 
6. At its meetings held on 2 April 2009, the Counc il for Trade in Services held a first round of 
discussions on the issue of compliance with GATS notification requirements.  This item had been placed on the Council's agenda following a request made by several delegations during informal 
consultations held at the beginning of 2009.  Two do cuments had been circulated at the April meeting:  
a Secretariat Note (JOB(09)/10/Rev.1), which provide d a statistical account of the notifications made 
under relevant GATS provisions;  and a co mmunication from Switzerland (S/C/W/297), on 
"Compliance with notification requirements under the GATS".  At the subsequent meeting, held on 
23 June 2009, the Council pursued its discussions of this issue. 
VI. SECTORAL DISCUSSIONS 
7. Following informal consultations held at the beginning of 2009, the Council for Trade in 
Services had requested that the Secretariat produce a series of Background Notes containing 
information and analysis on services sectors and modes of supply, by way of an update of similar Notes produced in 1998.  At its meeting held on 23 June 2009, the Council considered the first three 
Background Notes produced by the Secretariat, on tourism services (S/C/W/298), telecommunication services (S/C/W/299) and computer and related services (S/C/W/300).    S/C/32 
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  VII. WORK OF THE SUBSIDIARY BODIES 
8. The activities of the subsidiary bodies are refl ected in their respective reports, which are 
annexed to this report, as follows:  
 Annex  I Report of the Committee on Trade in Financial Services (S/FIN/22) 
 Annex  II Report of the Committee on Specific Commitments (S/CSC/15) 
 Annex  III Report of the Working Party on Domestic Regulation (S/WPDR/12) 
 Annex  IV Report of the Working Party on GATS Rules (S/WPGR/19)  
 
 
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 S/C/32 
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  ANNEX I 
  
WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/FIN/22 
2 October 2009 
 (09-4732) 
  
   
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE IN FINANCIAL SERVICES TO 
THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2009) 
 
 1. Since its last Annual Report to the Council for Trade in Services (S/FIN/20), the Committee 
on Trade in Financial Services has held three fo rmal meetings (on 1 D ecember 2008, 31 March and 
24 June 2009), and several informal meetings.  The reports of the formal meetings are contained in 
documents S/FIN/M/57 to 59.
1  In this period, the Committee addressed the following matters:  the 
acceptance of the Fifth Protocol to the GATS;  techni cal issues;  and recent developments in financial 
services trade.  It also organized a workshop to comme morate the entry into force of the said Protocol, 
and conducted the transitional review of the impl ementation by China of its WTO commitments.  
2. The Committee continued to monitor the status of acceptance of the Fifth Protocol to the 
GATS, which has yet to be accepted by Brazil, Jamaica and the Philippin es.  At the Committee’s 
request, these Members have reported periodically on the situation of their domestic acceptance 
procedures.   
3. A workshop to commemorate the entry into force of the Fifth Protocol to the GATS was held 
on 31 March under the Committee's auspices.  Speakers at the workshop included financial regulators, 
as well as representatives from academia and the priv ate sector.  Issues raised during the discussion 
included the following:  main factors behind th e crisis, both from a regulatory and industry 
perspectives; possible changes to financial regulati on; prospects for the financial services industry; 
and challenges for the financial services negotiati ons.  The workshop was followed by a formal 
meeting of the Committee in the afternoon of 31 March, on which occasion Members discussed some 
of the issues raised at the workshop. 
4. As part of the Committee's work on technical issues, the Chair held informal discussions on 
the following topics:  issues related to mode 1 and 2 commitments on financial services;  Islamic 
finance;  and microfinance.  The background do cuments for those discussions are contained in 
documents Job(09)/6, Job(09)/7, and Job(09)/8.  Following up on those discussions, the Committee 
decided to held dedicated discussions on Islamic fina nce and microfinance at a future meeting, with a 
view to considering issues related to trade in financ ial services, such as classification, trade barriers, 
and scheduling of commitments.   
5. At the meeting on 24 June, several suggestions for further work were made in the context of  
Members' discussions under the agenda items on tec hnical issues and recent developments in financial 
services trade. The United States proposed an info rmation exchange programme on trade in non-life 
insurance services with the goal of increasing Member s’ understanding of this sector.  South Africa 
                                                      
1 These reports should be read in conjunction with this annual report.  S/C/32 
 Page 5 
 
 
  announced the intention to submit a proposal to discu ss certain aspects of the financial crisis and the 
policy response to it from the perspective of trade in financial services.  Finally, Pakistan also 
announced its intention to submit a proposal to discuss issues related to the development of e-banking.  
6. At its meeting on 1 December 2008, the Committee carried out the seventh transitional review 
of the implementation by China of its WTO commi tments and of the related provisions of the 
Protocol on the Accession of the People's Republic of China (WT/L/432), pursuant to section 18 of 
the said Protocol.  The report of that review is contained in document S/FIN/21.   
 
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 S/C/32 
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  ANNEX II 
 
 
WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/CSC/15 
2 October 2009 
 (09-4716) 
  
  
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2009) 
 
 1. Since its Annual Report of 2008 to the Counc il for Trade in Services, the Committee on 
Specific Commitments held three formal mee tings:  on 3 December 2008, 2 April 2009, and 
24 June 2009.  During the reporti ng period, the Committee addressed three items:  the relationship 
between old and new commitments; scheduling issues; and classification issues.  The reports of these 
meeting are contained in documents S/CSC/M/47,  S/CSC/M/48, and S/CSC/M/49, which should be 
read in conjunction with this report.  
I. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OLD AND NEW COMMITMENTS 
2. The Committee held substantive discussions  on the relationship between existing 
commitments currently in force and new comm itments that would result from the current 
negotiations.  Issues addressed under this item in cluded: the incorporation methods and their 
implications; the incorporation instrument; and the ve rification exercise.  It was agreed at the meeting 
on 24 June 2009 that the replacement method shoul d be the working assumption to incorporate the 
results of the current market access negotiations in to the GATS.  The Secretariat was requested to 
prepare a compilation of past practice in terms of incorporation and verification. 
II. SCHEDULING ISSUES 
3. The Committee briefly touched upon issues related to economic needs tests (ENTs).  The 
Secretariat was requested to update the backgr ound note on ENTs (S/CSS/W/118) of 2001, but the 
Committee had yet to agree upon the scope of this updating.    
III. CLASSIFICATION ISSUES 
4. A suggestion was made at the meeting of  24 June 2009 that the Committee discuss new 
services in various sectors based on th e sectoral research undertaken by th e Secretariat.  It was agreed 
that the suggestion would be subject to the Chair's consultations. 
 
_______________ 
 
  
  S/C/32 
 Page 7 
 
 
  ANNEX III 
 
 WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/WPDR/12 
2 October 2009 
 (09-4723) 
  
   
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY ON DOMESTIC REGULATION  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2009) 
 
 1. Since the Annual Report of 2008
1, the Working Party on Domestic Regulation (WPDR) held 
three formal meetings and several informal meetings2. 
2. In the period covered by this report, the Wo rking Party continued with its work on the 
development of a draft text of regulatory disciplines pursuant to GATS Article VI:4, as mandated by the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration.  To facilitate  this task, the Chairman of the Working Party 
prepared a revised draft text of possible regulat ory disciplines, which was contained in a Room 
Document dated 20 March 2009.  
3. At the meeting of 26 November 2008, the Chairman provided an account of the work that had 
taken place, in informal consultations, during the firs t half of 2008, on the basis of the revised draft 
text of possible regulatory disciplines.  Focussed wo rk, in informal mode, had been carried out during 
the first half of the year, but had slowed after the summer.   At the meeting, several delegations called 
for a speedy resumption of technical work.  
4. At the meeting on 1 April 2009, the Chairman introduced his second revised draft text, which 
contained only changes to a handful of paragraphs of the text on which discussions had indicated wide 
support for new language, and which left  the overall balance of the text intact.  At the present stage of 
the negotiations, the Chair could not offer "solut ions" to those areas where differences among 
Members were still broad.  Numerous delegations str essed that a lot of work re mained to be done, but 
all accepted that the 
Chair's revised draft was a basis for future work.  
5. At the meeting on 26 June 2009, the Chair re ported on her consultations with Members on 
future work.  She reported that large gaps in ambition for the disciplines remained, and progress of 
work was linked to progress on the market access nego tiations.  Several delega tions were open to the 
idea of  a reality check on the disciplines as a complement ary element to technical work.  In informal 
mode, delegations engaged on an ex change of views on the development chapter of the Chairman's 
draft text.  
_______________  
                                                      
1  S/WPDR/11, 28 November 2008. 
2 The reports of the meetings are contained in documents S/WPDR/M/39-41, and should be read in 
conjunction with this report. S/C/32 
Page 8  
 
  ANNEX IV 
 
 
WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  S/WPGR/19 
2 October 2009 
 (09-4730) 
  
 
  
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY ON GATS RULES  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2009) 
 
 
1. Since its last Annual Report to the Council fo r Trade in Services in 2008 (S/WPGR/18), the 
Working Party on GATS Rules has held three fo rmal meetings:  on 2 De cember 2008, 30 March 2009 
and 22 June 2009.  The three negotiating mandates en trusted to the Working Party were put on the 
agenda of each meeting:  emergency safeguard  measures (Article X), government procurement 
(Article XIII) and subsidies (Article XV).   
2. Throughout 2009, consultations were conducted by the Chairman on the organization of 
future work by the Working Party in fulfilment of the GATS Rules mandate as contained in Annex C 
of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration.  In this connection, at the formal meeting of 22 June 2009, 
Members discussed the topics for informal technical  discussions in all three areas.  Following this 
meeting, an informal Chairman's Note, as contained in JOB (09)/82, was circulated providing a list of 
topics for commencing such discussions.  A first round of informal technical discussions was 
conducted on 16 September 2009 on th e definition of "domestic industry" for emergency safeguard 
measures (ESM) and a provisional working de finition for subsidies in services.   
I. NEGOTIATIONS ON EMERGENCY SAFEGUARD MEASURES (ARTICLE X) 
3. At the meeting of 30 March 2009, delegati ons continued to exchange views on the  
communication from the delegations of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, 
Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam on a draft Annex on Article X Emergency 
Safeguard Measures, as contained in JOB (07)/ 155.  The same delegations also presented an 
additional contribution, in the form of a room document, on their views on the way forward in the ESM discussions.  Preliminary views on the contribu tion were exchanged by delegations in informal 
mode.  At the meeting of 22 June 2009, dele gations discussed a communication from China on the 
issue of a "limited window" for emergency safeguard  measures.  Delegations also considered a 
Secretariat Note on "Safeguard-type Provisions in Economic Integration Agreements", as contained in 
S/WPGR/W/4/Add.2. 
II. NEGOTIATIONS ON GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT (ARTICLE XIII) 
4. At the meetings of 30 March 2009 and 22 June  2009, delegations continued to exchange 
views on the proposal from the European Communities,  concerning a legal text for an Annex to the 
GATS on Government Procurement (S/WPGR/W/54).  Members also considered the topics and the 
approach to be taken up in informal tec hnical discussions on government procurement.   S/C/32 
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III. NEGOTIATIONS ON SUBSIDIES (ARTICLE XV) 
5. At the meetings of 30 March 2009 and 22  June 2009, delegations continued their 
consideration of the topics to be taken up in  informal technical discussions, as well as the 
communication from Hong Kong, China and Mexico  on non-actionable subsidies (JOB(07)/27). 
Delegations also considered a Secretariat Note providing an "Overview of Subsidy Disciplines 
Relating to Trade in Services in Economic Integration Agreements", as contained in 
S/WPGR/W/46/Add.1 and Corr.1. At the meeting of 30 March, a representative from the OECD 
presented a study on subsidies for services, in  particular the case of export subsidies. 
__________