WTO expands Information Technology Agreement

The World Trade Organization on Wednesday announced the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), which promises to phase out hundreds of tariffs on information technology exports worldwide.    The World Trade Organization on Wednesday announced the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), which promises to phase out hundreds of tariffs on information technology exports worldwide.
   The expanded ITA is considered the first significant WTO deal in 18 years. The United States joined more than 50 other countries at the WTO ministerial meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, to approve the agreement.
   The WTO estimates that ITA expansion will eliminate tariffs on about $1.3 trillion in annual global exports of information and communications technology (ICT) products, which industry analysts estimate will increase annual global GDP by $190 billion.
   Under ITA expansion, more than $180 billion a year in U.S. technology exports alone will become tariff-free in key many markets around the globe.
   “Expanding the Information Technology Agreement to cover a wide array of additional products promises to be a major boost to U.S. technology exports and the jobs that support them,” said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman in a statement.
   The agreement was hailed by a number of large U.S. trade association for its benefits to the IT industry.
   “This market-opening agreement holds vast potential to boost U.S. exports and lower the costs of doing business for companies of all sizes,” said U.S. Council for International Business President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Robinson. “All businesses use ICTs, and dropping barriers on high-tech products will contribute to global growth, jobs and sustainable development.”
   Jake Colvin, National Foreign Trade Council’s vice president for global trade issues, noted the significance of a bilateral agreement reached between the United States and China at the WTO ministerial meeting to effectively move the expanded ITA forward.
   “We commend U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng of China for reaching consensus on an agreement to move the ITA forward,” he said. “Once complete, the ITA has the potential to eliminate an estimated $1 trillion in tariffs and improve the flow of information technology goods that underpin the participation of millions of innovators in the global economy.”
   The original ITA concluded in 1996, but it has not been updated since. President Obama requested the United States in these negotiations to expand the ITA in 2012. In July 2015, the parties reached agreement on the ITA expansion list of 201 products, and will now proceed to eliminate tariffs on those goods.