WTO offers online view to members’ origin rules

The World Trade Organization has updated its website to offer shippers a clearer and more up-to-date view into its members’ legislation and practices as they relate to rules of origin.    The World Trade Organization has updated its website to offer shippers a clearer and updated view into its members’ legislation and practices as they relate to rules of origin. 
   The revised webpage also contains current information on the WTO Committee on Rules of Origin’s work.
   Origin rules are important to transacting international trade, particularly when it comes to implementing trade preferences, producing country of origin labels, maintaining quotas, and complying with antidumping and countervailing duty measures.
   “With the multiplication of regional trade agreements, an increasing number of countries apply a variety of different sets of preferential rules of origin. In addition, a growing number of WTO members have also introduced non-preferential origin requirements. As a result, there is growing demand for transparency and a better understanding of these requirements,” the trade body said.
   The revised WTO origin rules webpage’s also offers other new features, such as streamlined menus and centralized information, meeting documents, links to trade disputes, and information on technical assistance.