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Policy statement
Statement
on future WTO work on competition and trade
The
Joint Working party on Competition and International Trade,
3 November 1998
ICC has been actively contributing
business views to international discussions on the interaction between trade
and competition policy. After issuing policy statements in 1996, it published
a draft report in February 1998 – prepared by its Joint Working Party on
Competition and International Trade - which reflected international business
perspectives on various issues relating to the interface between trade and competition
policies. The ICC’s Joint Working Party on Competition and Inter-national
Trade has also submitted written responses to certain questions informally asked
by members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Working Group on the Interaction
between Trade and Competition Policy.
The WTO’s Working Group on
the Interaction between Trade and Competition Policy (the WTO Working Group)
is in the process of finalizing its report on the subjects which it has considered
within the mandate established at the December 1996 Singapore Ministerial Conference
of the WTO. One of the issues to be considered is whether, and to what extent,
its mandate should be extended.
ICC believes that the current mandate
of the WTO Working Group should be prolonged for a period of time, to allow
its members to continue their educational discussions on issues relating to
market access and other aspects of the interface between trade and competition
policies. As governmental barriers to international trade have been reduced,
there have been growing concerns about the impact of private and state anti-competitive
actions on the free flow of goods and services. The WTO working group study
of this issue has been a constructive effort toward understanding this relationship.
ICC recommends that the WTO Working Group’s
mandate should include continued specific consideration of the impact of public
sector regulatory measures on market access. These would include preferential
treatment of state monopolies, barriers to effective competition established
by industry specific regulatory regimes (including licensing policies and market
ing
boards) and other exemptions which limit market access.
In addition, the mandate should
focus on the importance of principles of national treatment and transparency,
in relation to public sector decision-making which affects market access. Furthermore,
any consideration of enhanced international cooperation should include appropriate
measures and safeguards to protect the confidentiality of proprietary business
information from improper disclosure1.
ICC does not believe that, at this
time, the mandate of the WTO Working Group should go beyond educational and
informative discussions among its members on market access issues related to
competition and trade policies. ICC believes that any consideration by the WTO
Working Group at this time of an international dispute settlement mechanism
coupled with new international rules governing competition policy would be premature.
Should the WTO Working Group’s mandate be prolonged, ICC suggests that
there should be opportunities for the WTO Working Group to receive and consider
business views. Dialogue with the business community would be essential, in
ICC’s view, should the WTO consider expanding the Working Group’s
mandate beyond its current educational focus.
ICC continues to support dialogue
within various international organizations, principally the WTO and the Organisation
for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD). This will provide a better
foundation for future examination of whether it would be appropriate to consider
resolution of these issues within a multilateral framework.
(1) See ICC
Statement on International Cooperation between Antitrust Authorities (28
March 1996)
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