Think tank GTRI said that there is a sharp divide in the ongoing ministerial conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Cameroon over the e-commerce moratorium on customs duties.
It said that while the US is pushing for a permanent extension of the moratorium, India and other developing countries oppose it, citing revenue loss and policy constraints.
“The sharpest divide is there over the e-commerce moratorium on customs duties. A temporary compromise of 2-4 years appears the most likely outcome,” the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said.
Key concerns for India
The third day of the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaounde, Cameroon, is emerging as pivotal, with ministers meeting across four tracks: fisheries subsidies, investment facilitation, e-commerce, and agriculture.
On the China-led Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) pact, pressure on New Delhi is expected to intensify in small-group “green room” meetings, GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said.
“India’s concern is less about the pact itself than the precedent it sets, opening the door to plurilateral deals that once embedded within the WTO, act as Trojan horses gradually reshaping the institution’s multilateral character,” he said.
He added that little progress is expected on fisheries subsidies, where divisions persist.
“With tensions spanning digital trade, IFD and plurilateral agreements, today’s discussions are set to determine whether MC14 ends in a modest compromise or exposes deeper fractures within the WTO,” he said.
India cautious on weaponizing transparency: Goyal
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that India has cautioned WTO members against weaponising transparency to justify trade retaliation or challenge legitimate domestic policies, saying it must be backed by sustained capacity-building support to ensure all members, especially developing countries, can meet obligations fairly and effectively.
The US has been pushing for stricter rules on mandatory disclosures as part of the WTO reform proposal. It alleges that many countries do not notify the WTO in a timely manner of subsidies, tariffs, or policy changes.
Developing member nations of the WTO agree in principle that transparency is important, but have serious reservations about how the US wants to implement it. These emerging economies oppose penalties for failure to notify information, arguing that many countries lack capacity.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal also said the country supports a time-bound restart of reform efforts with milestones, but said that it should be based on a more robust evidentiary analysis and through engagement with submissions and Ministerial Decisions.