Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has warned that despite governments response to disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz, these adjustments have not fully offset energy and food price pressures on vulnerable developing nations.
Speaking at the 7th Africa Emerging Markets Forum in Abuja jointly organized by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Emerging Markets Forum (EMF), and the Centre for the Study of the Economies of Africa (CSEA), Okonjo-Iweala provided an overview of global trade dynamics.
She noted that world merchandise trade grew by 4.6 percent, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence-related goods that offset headwinds from tariff hikes and trade policy friction.
Global trade in services expanded even faster, rising 5.3 percent, with digitally delivered services growing by nearly 6 percent, she noted.
“Most countries continue to trade on rules-based WTO terms. Around 72 percent of global goods trade flows under core WTO Most-Favoured-Nation tariffs, while an additional 16 percent moves under bilateral and regional preference agreements built on WTO foundations,” she said.
She highlighted that global goods trade volumes were more than 12 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2019, while services trade volumes surged by 31 percent over the same period.
The WTO DG further emphasized the growing significance of South-South trade, which has expanded from under 10 percent of total global trade in 1995 to nearly 25 percent today.
She added that out of 384 regional trade agreements formally notified to the WTO, 49 percent are among developing economies, while 22 non-member nations are actively seeking WTO accession.