India's trade negotiators to strategise for WTO this month

New Delhi: India's trade negotiators will meet later this month to draw up the strategy for the next World Trade Organisation (WTO) ministerial conference and prepare for the country's eighth trade policy review (TPR) at the global watchdog next year, officials said.

The commerce and industry ministry is organising a WTO retreat in New Delhi amid the global trade turmoil and a dysfunctional dispute settlement body of the WTO, they said.

"A retreat is being planned in the week of August 25. The agenda is still fluid but the focus will be to prepare for MC14 and India's TPR," one of the officials said.


The TPR is a key pillar of the WTO's functioning as it enables an assessment of the trade policies and practices of member countries. India's TPR is held every five years. The last one was in 2021.

Usually, the review includes preparation of two important reports: one by the WTO Secretariat and another by India, which are then circulated to all members, and become the basis for member's questions.

The 14th WTO ministerial conference, or MC14, is planned for 2026. It is crucial in the light of the US' high tariff regime.

The global trade watchdog expects the tariffs to weigh on imports into the US and depress exports of its trading partners in the second half of 2025 and in 2026.

New Delhi has insisted on WTO reform, particularly the restoration of a binding, two-tier, effective and fully functioning dispute settlement mechanism and consensus-based decision making, along with special and differential treatment for developing and least developed countries.

India has flagged concerns on the intention of some countries to sidestep consensus-based decision making, which ensures every member's voice matters.

New Delhi has highlighted that there are attempts to dilute the multilateral character of the organisation with a club within club kind of approach and called for action to address trade distortions caused by non-market economies and non-tariff barriers.