Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference Doha Mandates

The document details the early stages of the Doha Round negotiations on WTO rules, highlighting the friction between developed and developing nations over trade remedies and subsidies. It examines specific proposals to reform anti-dumping procedures, the debate over the 'safe harbour' of OECD export credit standards, and the contentious issue of fisheries subsidies. Additionally, it outlines the effort to balance the proliferation of regional trade agreements with multilateralism, noting a lack of consensus on key definitions and the developmental impact of such agreements.

• Developing countries successfully pushed for the inclusion of trade remedy and subsidy rules in the Doha Round to limit the use of anti-dumping and countervailing duties, though the US resisted this, viewing these remedies as an "essential tool of its trade policy."
• The 'Friends of Anti-dumping Negotiations' seek rule changes to restrict the application of trade remedies, while the US focuses on "procedural fairness" and transparency to ensure it loses fewer disputes at the WTO.
• India and Brazil have advocated for making the 'lesser-duty' rule mandatory, which would require anti-dumping duties to be set below the margin if that is sufficient to remove domestic industry injury.
• A significant conflict exists regarding export credits: the EU supports the OECD Arrangement as an "effective ‘safe harbour’", whereas Brazil and India argue this creates asymmetries that benefit developed countries and weaken the multilateral system.
• There is no consensus on fisheries subsidies; the 'Friends of Fish' argue subsidies cause the "alarming depletion of many fish stocks", while Japan and Korea maintain that "poor fisheries management" is the root cause.
• Venezuela, the EU, and Canada have proposed reintroducing 'non-actionable subsidies' (previously expired in 2000) to support research and environmental protections, such as "encouraging reductions in pollution".
• Negotiations on Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) are divided between members heavily involved in regionalism (EU, Norway, Brazil, Hungary) and those relying on the WTO (Australia, India, Pakistan), with ongoing debates over the definition of "substantially all the trade".

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2003). Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference Doha Mandates. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_doha_wto_rules.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference Doha Mandates. 2003. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_doha_wto_rules.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference Doha Mandates |date=February 2003 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_doha_wto_rules.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2003developments, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference Doha Mandates}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2003}, month = feb, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_doha_wto_rules.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }