. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/REG/W/61 
20 September 2011  
 
(11-4547) 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements  Original:  English 
  
 
COMMITTEE ON REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS 
 
A proposal on RTAs from Australia;  Canada;  Chile;  China;  Hong Kong,  China;  India;  
Japan;  Mexico;  New Zealand;  Norway;  the Republic of Korea;  and the 
Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu 
 
  The following communication, dated 20 September 2011 has been received from the Delegations of Australia;  Canada;  Chile;  China;   Hong Kong, China;  India;  Japan, Mexico;  
New Zealand;  Norway;  the Republic of Korea and the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, 
Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu. 
_______________ 
  
1. On 2 December 2009, the Chairman of the WT O's Seventh Ministerial Conference noted in 
relation to the WTO's discussions on RTAs that "there is still room for improvement, through … 
highlighting better the common elements in different RTAs". 
2. Since then, several Members proposed that fu rther work be done on this area in the 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements, including through a more systematic analysis and 
discussion of the information provided through the RTA Transparency Mechanism, to identify general 
trends and practices in RTAs.  The WTO's World Trade Report 2011 also recently provided a useful 
preliminary analysis of this kind and posed some important questions about the implications for the 
multilateral trading system that arise from the proliferation of many and different RTAs.  
3. There is scope for Members to better use the information on RTAs, including that provided 
through the Transparency Mechanism, the Worl d Trade Report and elsewhere, to improve our 
collective understanding of the cross-cutting el ements of RTAs, both their market access and 
regulatory aspects.  On this basis, Members should al so engage in a discussion about the implications 
for the operation of the multilateral trading system. 
4. It would therefore be useful for Members to engage in a work progr amme in the Committee 
on Regional Trade Agreements, based on further deta iled factual reports to be prepared by the 
Secretariat on specific areas of RTAs, as identified in  the issue headings contained in the factual 
presentations drawn up under the Transparency Mechan ism.  The reports would be factual in nature 
and identify trends and practices across RTAs in eac h area.  The work programme would not seek to 
change WTO disciplines, create de facto benchmarks  or supplant the work of the Rules Negotiating 
Group.  The papers would emulate the approach take n in earlier papers prepared in 2002 on Rules of 
Origin (WT/REG/W/45) and coverage of RTAs (WT/REG/W/46).  
Proposed Ministerial Language 
 
5. Ministers noted the growth and increasing prom inence of RTAs in world trade, and saw 
value in WTO Members assessing the implications of this for the multilateral trading system. 
Ministers, noting that the Committee on Regi onal Trade Agreements (CRTA) has the mandate WT/REG/W/61 
Page 2  
 
  to consider the systemic implications of  RTAs for the multilateral trading system
1, therefore 
direct the CRTA to undertake a work programme, us ing factual reports to be prepared by the 
Secretariat, to consider the cross-cutting elements , trends and practices in RTAs.  This work 
programme could eventually help Members refl ect on the implications for the multilateral 
trading system and gather collective views on negotiating RTAs that uphold the multilateral 
trading system.  The results of this work progr amme will be reported to the Ninth Ministerial 
Conference of the WTO. 
__________  
                                                      
1 WT/L/127.