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PRESS RELEASE: PRESS/TPRB/320

TRADE POLICY REVIEW:

Open trade policy has contributed to growth and poverty reduction

Chile’s trade and investment regime continues to be characterized by openness, transparency, and predictability, and together with sound macroeconomic management, it has contributed to growth and poverty reduction, according to the WTO Secretariat review on the trade policies and practices of Chile.

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The WTO report, along with a policy statement by the Government, will be the basis for the Trade Policy Review (TPR) by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO.

Since the last review in 2003, Chile has adopted measures to modernize customs and facilitate trade, maintained a single MFN tariff rate of 6% with a few exceptions, abolished some import taxes and export subsidies, and introduced significant reforms to its competition policy, government procurement and intellectual property systems.

The report notes that benefits could arise from re-examining and eventually changing measures such as the imposition of non-ad valorem tariffs on a few agricultural products and the application of reciprocity requirements in a handful of activities.

The report also notes that, one of the most prominent features of Chile's trade policy regime is the central role it gives to Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) of which it has 21 in force with 57 trading partners. At the same time, Chile remains strongly committed to the multilateral trading system.

The report, along with a policy statement by the Government of Chile, will be the basis for the fourth Trade Policy Review (TPR) of Chile by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO on 7 and 9 of October 2009.

The following documents are available in MS Word format.

• Secretariat report
  > Contents and summary observations
  > Economic environment
  > Trade and investment regimes
  > Trade policies and practices by measure
  > Trade policies by sector
  > Appendix tables
    
• Government report
    

Note  back to top

Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO agreements, in which member countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each review, two documents are prepared: a policy statement by the government of the member under review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.

Print copies of previous TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop.

The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press, 4611-F Assembly Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States.

Schedule of forthcoming reviews  back to top

Maldives: 26 and 28 October 2009
Southern African Customs Union (SACU): 4 and 6 November 2009
Niger/Senegal: 11 and 13 November 2009

SEE ALSO    > Full list of previous TPRs

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