The WTO's Regulation of Preferential Trading Agreements in Favour of Developing Countries
12 Pages Posted: 14 Oct 2013
Date Written: October 11, 2013
Abstract
This paper examines the compliance of preferential trade agreements in favour of developing countries including the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) scheme and the European Union's Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA)s with the law of the World Trade Organization (WTO). As a consequence of WTO caselaw, states are free to discriminate among developing states in their GSPs, as long as this is based on transparent and objective criteria. EPAs, which are structured as traditional, reciprocal trade as well as investment agreements, will be evaluated under the WTO's rules for normal preferential arrangements, the legal tests for which remain relatively indeterminate.
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