Overview
- Ten members of the FIT Partnership issued a non-binding statement on Mar 16 backing a permanent WTO moratorium on duties for software downloads, streaming and other electronic transmissions.
- The declaration followed a virtual meeting chaired by Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Trade Minister Gan Kim Yong and was endorsed by Costa Rica, Iceland, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Rwanda, Singapore, Switzerland and Uruguay.
- Signatories also pledged to advance the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement and the E‑Commerce Agreement into the WTO framework and to use the MPIA to support dispute settlement.
- The moratorium is up for decision at the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaounde on Mar 26–29, and it will expire if members do not agree to renew it.
- Positions remain divided, with the United States urging permanence, India stating it will oppose an extension or permanence, and China voicing support for the moratorium, as reported by The Indian Express.