Cross-Border Supply of Services – Pattern of specific commitments WTO Symposium on Cross-Border Supply of Services Geneva, April 2005 Mireille Cossy Counsellor Trade in Services Division

Economic importance of each mode The share of individual modes in world services trade has been roughly estimated at: Mode 1 : ~ 35 per cent Mode 2 : ~ 10 – 15 per cent Mode 3 : ~ 50 per cent Mode 4 : ~ 1 – 2 per cent Source: WTO Secretariat, 2005

Distribution of commitments across sectors - Overview Number of WTO Members Source: WTO, Trade in Services Division

Level of MA commitments in selected sectors for all Members Source: R. Adlung & M. Roy, Turning Hills Into Mountains? Current Commitments Under the GATS and Prospects for Change, Staff Working Paper ERSD , WTO.

Level of NT commitments in selected sectors for all Members Source: Trade in Services Division, WTO, 2005

Type of MA commitments in selected sectors – Mode 1 Source: R. Adlung & M. Roy, Turning Hills Into Mountains? Current Commitments Under the GATS and Prospects for Change, Staff Working Paper ERSD , WTO

Type of MA commitments in selected sectors – Mode 1 Source: R. Adlung & M. Roy, Turning Hills Into Mountains? Current Commitments Under the GATS and Prospects for Change, Staff Working Paper ERSD , WTO.

Commitments under mode 1: general observations Overall, mode 1 has attracted less commitments than modes 2 and 3. Larger share of Unbound In general, mode 1 is consolidated as None or Unbound (or Unbound*). Few limitations are used The level of bindings does not differ significantly between developed and developing countries Except recent accessions

Why such a low level of commitments for mode 1? Possible explanations: Cross-border supply is irrelevant, i.e. not feasible, for a number of activities (Unbound*): Hair-dressing services, for instance. However, assumptions regarding lack of technical feasibility have changed in various sectors. Uncertainties with regard to how to enforce regulatory measures with respect to suppliers situated abroad (?)

Specific commitments and actual market conditions Absence of specific commitments does not mean absence of trading opportunities! Access regimes are in fact relatively liberal for services provided over the Internet But specific commitments would add transparency and predictability.

Do conditional offers propose substantial improvement for mode 1? Overall, initial offers are modest: Number of Members, sectoral coverage and levels of commitments As of 15 April 2005, fifty-two offers were tabled (EC counted as one) Mode 1 remains largely unbound

Number of offers in selected sectors/sub-sectors Source: Trade in Services Division, 2005

Number of Members with commitments and offers in selected sectors/sub-sectors Source: Trade in Services Division, 2005

Level of treatment: % of Unbound in additional sectoral entries (MA) % of unbound in additional sectoral entries included in offers Source: Trade in Services Division, 2005

In what modes are improvements to existing sectoral entries made? Offers – % of existing sectoral entries improved Source: Trade in Services Division, 2005