In a recent meeting of the Council for Trade in Services, members discussed the report "Trade in Services for Development," co-published by the WTO Secretariat and the World Bank. The report emphasizes that global services trade offers significant growth opportunities for developing economies, accounting for over two-thirds of world GDP and employing more workers than any other sector. It highlights that since 2005, developing economies' services exports have grown faster than the world average.
The report suggests that as the global economy shifts towards services, policies on services trade can contribute to inclusiveness, digital connectivity, export diversification, and achieving Sustainable Development Goals. International cooperation is deemed crucial to harnessing changes in service markets.
The WTO Secretariat's Economic Research and Statistics Division noted strong growth in services trade across most sectors in 2023, driven by digitally delivered services and international travel. In early 2024, services trade grew by 8% year-on-year. The updated WTO-OECD Balanced Trade in Services dataset now covers additional sectors up to 2023.
Members explored around 20 proposals from six members regarding outcomes from past ministerial conferences to enhance participation of developing members in services trade. Discussions focused on avoiding duplication of work done by subsidiary bodies like the Committee on Trade in Financial Services.
There was consensus on discussing topics such as regulatory practices, digitalization, development, and green transition related to services trade. Members agreed to consolidate similar proposals before their next meeting in March 2025.
Discussions continued on collecting information about LDCs' engagement with consumers and enterprises abroad following a mandate to operationalize the "LDC Services Waiver." Concerns were raised about cybersecurity measures and mobile applications involving countries like China, Viet Nam, Japan, India, and the United States.
Three proposals were discussed regarding e-commerce costs of remittance services within financial service trades. Members also considered advancing discussions on resilience to crises and disaster preparedness.
China proposed dedicated discussions on facilitating electronic payments through cooperation with other organizations. The Philippines suggested a session on electronic payment system interoperability focusing on laws related to electronic money issuance.
India proposed establishing a work programme to reduce remittance service costs but suggested thematic discussions instead due to lack of consensus. Members recognized these issues' importance while ensuring complementarity with ongoing work elsewhere.
An event titled "Global Services Trade Policy: an Overview and Recent Developments" presented data from the World Bank-WTO database showing policy restrictions affecting trade across various sectors remain high but are converging between developed and developing economies due to policy reforms lowering trade costs by up to 10%.