Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/311210 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
WTO Staff Working Paper No. ERSD-2025-03
Publisher: 
World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva
Abstract: 
This paper examines the evolution of global merchandise trade, between 2010 and 2022, assessing the share of imports subject to regional trade agreements (RTAs). A key question for us is whether the share of merchandise trade subject to preferences has kept pace with the proliferation in RTAs. The paper finds that with the growing number of RTAs over the period, the share of the total volume of global imports involving RTA partners increased from 37% in 2010 to 52% in 2022. However, potential preferential imports between them under RTAs remained relatively stable, rising slightly from almost 17% in 2010 to 23% in 2022. Moreover, we find that on average 80% of global imports which do not fall under RTA preferences continued to dominate global merchandise trade between 2010 and 2022. Using tariff-line level import data for 157 customs territories and their RTAs, we find that, to a large extent, an increase in MFN duty-free imports globally has limited the scope of preferential imports under RTAs, highlighting the continued significance of MFN principles in international trade.
Subjects: 
WTO
RTAs
Preferential Trade
MFN Trade
JEL: 
F13
F14
F15
F53
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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