EntityQ7825· pop 152· linked from 5,091 articles

World Trade Organization

intergovernmental organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade

AI overview

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization made up of member governments that works to reduce barriers to trade between countries and help trade flow more smoothly across borders. It matters because the rules and agreements it oversees affect the prices of goods people buy, the jobs available in different industries, and how countries do business with each other.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Wikidata facts

Official website: wto.org
Image: Fourth Global Review of Aid for Trade 1691 (9237986689).jpg

Show 1 more fact

P7771: Zanzibar Islands

Sources (12)

Article

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. Established on 1 January 1995, pursuant to the 1994 Marrakesh Agreement, it succeeded the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which was created in 1948. As the world's largest international economic organization, the WTO has 166 members, representing over 98% of global trade and global GDP. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

The WTO's primary functions are to provide a framework for negotiating trade agreements and to resolve trade disputes among its members. Its agreements, which are negotiated and signed by the majority of the world's trading nations and ratified in their legislatures, cover trade in goods, services, and intellectual property. The organization operates on the principle of non-discrimination—enshrined in the most-favoured-nation and national treatment provisions—but allows for exceptions for environmental protection, national security, and other objectives.