World-Trade-Organization.doc

World Trade OrganizationThe world Trade Organization(WTO) is an international organization designed to supervise and liberalize international trade. The WTO came into being on January 1,1995, and is the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade(GATT), which was created in 1947, and continued to operate for almost five decades as a de facto international organization.The World Trade Organization deals with the rules of trade between nations at a near-global level；it is responsible for negotiating and implementing new trade agreements, and is in charge of policing member countries adherence to all the WTO agreements, signed by the bulk of the worlds trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. Most of the WTOs current work comes from the 1986-94 negotiations called the Uruguay Round, and earlier negotiations under the GATT. The organization is currently the host to new negotiations, under the Doha Development Agenda(DDA) launched in 2001.The WTO is governed by a Ministerial Conference, which meets every two years; a General Council, which implements the conferences policy decisions and is responsible for day-to-day administration; and a director-general, who is appointed by the Ministerial Conference. The WTOs headquarters are in Geneva. Switzerland.Mission and FunctionsThe WTOs stated goal is to improve the welfare of the peoples of its member countries, specifically by lowering trade barriers and providing a platform for negotiation of trade. Its main mission is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible. This main mission is further specified in certain core functions serving and safeguarding five fundamental principles, which are the foundation of the multilateral trading system.Among the various functions of the WTO, these are regarded by analysts as the most important:It oversees the implementation, administration and operation of the covered agreements.It provides a forum for negotiations and for settling disputes.Additionally, it is the WTOs duty to review the national trade policies, and to ensure the coherence and transparency of trade policies through surveillance in global economic policy-making. Another priority of the WTO is the assistance of developing, lease-developed and low-income countries in transition to adjust to WTO rules and disciplines through technical cooperation and training. The WTO is also a center of economic research and analysis: regular assessments of the global trade picture in its annual publications and research reports on specific topics are produced by the organization. Finally, the WTO cooperates closely with the two other components of the Bretton Woods system, the IMF and the World Bank.Accession and MembershipThe process of becoming a WTO member is unique to each applicant country, and the terms of accession are dependent upon the countrys stage of economic development and current trade regime. The process takes about five years, on average, but it can last more if the country is less than fully committed to the process or if political issues interfere. As is typical of WTO procedures, an offer of accession is only given once consensus is reached among interested parties.The WTO has 151 members( almost all of the 123 nations participating in the Uruguay Round signed on at its foundation, and the rest had to get membership). The 27 states of the European Union are represented also as the European Communities. WTO members do not have to be full sovereign nation-members. Instead, they must be a customs territory with full autonomy in the conduct of their external commercial relations. A number of non-members have been observers at the WTO and are currently negotiating their membership. With the exception of the Holy See, observers must start accession negotiations within five years of becoming observes. Some international intergovernmental organizations are also granted observer status to WTO bodies. 14 states and 2 territories so far have no official interaction with the WTO.Chinas increasing integration with the global economy has contributed to sustained growth in international trade. Its exports have become more diversified, and greater penetration of industrial country markets has been accompanied by a surge in Chinas imports from all regions - especially Asia, where China plays an increasingly central role in regional specialization. Tariff reforms have been implemented in China since the 1980s and with its WTO accession in December 11th 2001, China has committed itself to additional reforms that are far-reaching and challenging. Sustained implementation of these commitments would further deepen Chinas international integration and generate benefits for most partner countries.国际贸易组织世界贸易组织(WTO)是一个国际组织,旨在监督国际贸易自由化。世界贸易组织诞生于1995年1月1日起,他的前身是关税和贸易总协定(GATT),成立于1947年,并继续操作近5年成为事实上的国际组织。世界贸易组织处理国家间贸易规则的在一个基准水平;负责谈判和实施新的贸易协定,并负责监督成员国的坚持所有由大部分世界贸易国签署且由他们的国会批准的世贸协议。大部分的WTO目前的工作是由从1986 - 1994年的乌拉圭回合谈判以及早先在关贸总协定工作演变而来的。该组织目前是在2001年发表的多哈发展议程（DDA）下组织发展的。世界贸易组织是由每两年举行一次的部长级会议来领导;总理事会：实现了会议的决策和负责日常管理;总干事：由他任命部长级会议的成员。世贸组织的总部在瑞士的日内瓦。任务和功能世贸组织的既定目标是提高人民的福利其成员国,特别是通过降低贸易壁垒以及提供一个平台让谈判的贸易。其主要使命是“确保贸易流通,平稳, 尽可能自由化”。这个主要的任务是在某些核心功能进一步细化服务和维护五个基本原则,这也是多边贸易体系的基础。在众多世贸组织的功能中,被分析师认为最重要的是:它监督实施,管理,操作覆盖协议。它提供了一个论坛来谈判和解决争议此外,WTO的义务是检查国家的贸易政策, 过监视全球经济决策来确保贸易政策的连贯性和透明度通。另一个世贸组织的优越性是他通过技术合作和培训协助开发、靠租借发展的和低收入国家过渡到适应WTO规则和纪律。WTO也是一个经济研究和分析的中心: 在年度出版物及研究报告针对某特定主题制作的组织定期评估全球贸易的形势。最后,世界贸易组织与布雷顿森林体系,国际货币基