Trade Agreements

www.apec.org

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation organization aims to foster sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. It promotes free and open trade and investment, regional economic integration, economic and technical cooperation, human security, and a favorable and sustainable business environment.

www.adb.org

The Asian Development Bank is dedicated to reducing, and ultimately eradicating, poverty in the Asia and Pacific region. Founded in 1966, it supports its member countries through loans, grants, policy dialogue, technical assistance, and equity investments, with an emphasis on infrastructure, health care services, financial and public administration systems, climate, and natural-resource management.

www.asean.org

ASEAN aims to build a prosperous and peaceful community of Southeast Asian nations by helping accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region. It promotes regional peace and stability through collaboration and mutual assistance in the economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific and administrative fields.

cairnsgroup.org

The Cairns Group is a coalition of 20 agricultural exporting countries from Latin America, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region. Together the members account for more than 25 percent of the world’s agricultural exports. Consisting of both developed and developing economies, the Cairns Group advocates for the liberalization of agricultural trade. Its goals include the elimination of export subsidies, tariff controls, and clearer rules surrounding subsidy commitments.

www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/instrument-and-tools/hs_convention.aspx

The Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System is an international product nomenclature developed by the World Customs Organization. It is made up of about 5,000 commodity groups identified by a six-digit code. A product’s code determines the applicable duty rate, and indicates what licenses or permits are required. The HS contributes to the harmonization of customs and trade procedures, and reduces costs associated with international trade. The HS, in use in more than 200 countries, is also used to classify goods for other purposes, such as internal taxes, trade policies, monitoring of controlled goods, rules of origin, freight tariffs, transport statistics, price monitoring, quota controls, compilation of national accounts, and economic research and analysis.

www.unctad.org/Templates/Page.asp?intItemID=1418&lang=1

The Generalized System of Preferences is a system of exemptions that requires all WTO members to treat imports from all other member states equally and provides free rates of duty on imports from developing countries.

www.g77.org

Established by seventy-seven developing countries in 1964, the Group of 77 has grown to include 134 countries and is the largest intergovernmental organization of developing countries in the United Nations. It provides its member nations with a means to articulate their shared interests and positions on economic development and monetary policy at the UN, and to promote their collective interests in global discussions and negotiations.

www.ilo.org

The International Labour Organization, the UN’s first specialized agency, brings together government representatives, employers, and workers to promote workers' rights. It also encourages employment opportunities, enhances social protection, and strengthens dialogue in handling labor-related issues.

www.imf.org

The International Monetary Fund aims to promote global monetary and exchange stability, facilitate the expansion and balanced growth of international trade, and assist in the establishment of a multilateral system of payments for current transactions.

www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/facilitation/instrument-and-tools/c onventions/pf_revised_kyoto_conv.aspx

The Revised Kyoto Convention on Customs Procedures was adopted by the World Customs Organization to provide customs administrations with simple and uniform administration principles and procedures. It is aimed at bringing transparency, predictability, and efficiency to international commerce.

www.unctad.org

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development is the UN body responsible for dealing with development issues, particularly international trade. It promotes the integration of developing nations into the world economy through research and policy analysis, technical assistance, and the facilitation of intergovernmental deliberations. Every two years, UNCTAD organizes the World Investment Forum, which brings together major players from the international investment community to discuss challenges and opportunities and to promote investment policies and partnerships for sustainable development and equitable growth.

www.unescap.org

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific is the regional development arm of the United Nations for the Asia-Pacific region. It aims to promote inclusive and sustainable economic and social development in the region by focusing on such areas as trade and investment, transportation, social development, environment, and disaster risk reduction.

www.un.org

The United Nations is a world intergovernmental organization aimed at fostering global peace and security, economic development, social progress, and human rights. Its four main purposes are: to keep peace throughout the world; to develop friendly relations among nations; to help nations work together to improve the lives of poor people, to conquer hunger, disease and illiteracy, and to encourage respect for each other’s rights and freedoms; and to be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations to achieve these goals.