Global Giants Statement on the WTO Moratorium on Customs Duties on
Electronic Transmissions
·
WTO DG Flooded with Representations from
World Over
· Urge
WTO members to renew the Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic
Transmissions until the next Ministerial conference.
· Allowing
the Moratorium to expire would be a historic setback for the WTO, representing
an unprecedented termination of a multilateral agreement in place nearly since
the WTO’s inception
· Manufacturers
– both large and small, and across a range of industrial sectors – rely on the
constant flow of research, design, and process data and software to enable
their production flows and supply chains for critical products.
· The
revenue implications of the Moratorium are likely to be relatively small and
its discontinuation would cause wider economic losses.
On
the occasion of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12), the undersigned
associations urge WTO members to renew the Moratorium on Customs Duties on
Electronic Transmissions until the next Ministerial conference.
Allowing
the Moratorium to expire would be a historic setback for the WTO, representing
an unprecedented termination of a multilateral agreement in place nearly since
the WTO’s inception – an agreement that has allowed the digital economy to take
root and grow. All WTO members have a stake in the organization’s continued
institutional credibility and resilience, as well as its relevance at a time of
unprecedented digital transformation.
Continuation
of the Moratorium is critical to the COVID-19 recovery. As detailed by the
United Nations, the World Bank, the OECD, and many other organizations, the
cross-border exchange of knowledge, technical know-how, and scientific and
commercial information across transnational IT networks, as well as access to
digital tools and global market opportunities have helped sustain economies,
expand education, and raise global living standards.
Continuation
of the Moratorium is also important to supply chain resilience for
manufacturing and services industries in the COVID-19 era. Manufacturers – both
large and small, and across a range of industrial sectors – rely on the
constant flow of research, design, and process data and software to enable
their production flows and supply chains for critical products.
The
Moratorium is particularly beneficial to Micro, Small and Medium-Sized
Enterprises (MSMEs), whose ability to access and leverage digital tools has
allowed them to stay in business amidst physical restrictions and lockdowns.
Failure
to renew the Moratorium will jeopardize these benefits, as customs restrictions
that interrupt cross-border access to knowledge and digital tools will harm
MSMEs, the global supply chain, and COVID-19 recovery – increasing digital
fragmentation. As UNCTAD has explained, such fragmentation “reduces market
opportunities for domestic MSMEs to reach worldwide markets, [and] ... reduces
opportunities for digital innovation, including various missed opportunities
for inclusive development that can be facilitated by engaging in data-sharing
through strong international cooperation. ... [M]ost
small, developing economies will lose opportunities for raising their digital
competitiveness.” 1
Furthermore,
as the OECD has explained, “the revenue implications of the Moratorium are
likely to be relatively small and its discontinuation would cause wider
economic losses.”2 Other reports predict greater GDP losses due to potential
implementation of retaliatory duties.3 Countries that impose such duties also
face longer-term harms due to a less predictable investment climate, reduced
foreign direct investment, and reduced access to knowledge, information, and
digital tools needed by local students, patients, MSMEs, and other domestic
constituents.
We
therefore urge all WTO members to show strong leadership and support of the
digital economy by supporting a continuation of the WTO Moratorium on Customs
Duties on Electronic Transmissions at MC12.
1.
Africa Cloud Association
2. Africa
Information and Communication Technologies Alliance (AfICTA)
3. Alianza del Pacífico
4.
Allied for Startups
5.
ACT | The App Association
6.
Asia Cloud Computing Association
7.
Asia Internet Coalition
8.
Asia Pacific MSME Trade Coalition (AMTC)
9.
Asia Business Trade Association
10. Asociación de Internet MX
11. Asociación Latinoamericana de Exportadores de Servicios (ALES)
12. Associação Brasileira das Empresas de Software (ABES)
13.
Association of Competitive Telecom Operators (ACTO) (India)
14.
Australasian Performing Rights Association / Australasian Mechanical Copyright
Owners Association (APRA AMCOS)
15.
Australian Services Roundtable
16.
Australian Industry Group
17.
Belize Coalition of Service Providers (BCSP)
18.
Brazilian National Confederation of Industry
19.
BSA | The Software Alliance
20.
Business Council of Canada
21.
Business NZ
22. Câmara Brasileira da Economia Digital
23. Cámara Colombiana de Comercio Electrónico
24.
Canadian Chamber of Commerce
25.
Canadian Services Coalition (CSC)
26.
Caribbean Network of Services Coalition
27.
Center for International Economic Collaboration (CFIEC)
28.
Chamber of Digital Industry and Services of National Business Association of
Colombia – ANDI
29.
China Council for Promotion of Int’l Trade
30.
China Semiconductor Industry Association (CSIA)
31.
City of London Corporation
32.
Coalition of Services Industries (CSI)
33.
Copyright Overseas Promotion Association (COA) (South Korea)
34.
Digital Trade Network
35.
Dominican Republic Services Association
36.
Ecommerce Forum Africa
37.
Emerging Business Factory (Morocco)
38.
European Services Forum (ESF)
39.
European Semiconductor Industry Association (ESIA)
40.
Global Data Alliance
41.
Global Trade Solutions (South Africa)
42.
Grenada Coalition of Service Industries (GCSI)
43.
Hong Kong Coalition of Services Industries
44.
India Electronics & Semiconductor Association (IESA)
45.
Indonesia Services Dialogue (ISD)
46.
Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)
47.
Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA) (Australia)
48.
The International Association of Scholarly, Technical and Medical Publishers
(STM)
49.
International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
50.
International Generic and Biosimilar medicines Association (IGBA)
51.
Japan Business Council in Europe (JBCE)
52.
Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA)
53.
Japan Information Technology Service Industry Association (JISA)
54.
Japan Machinery Center for Trade and Investment (JMC)
55.
Japan Semiconductor Industry Association (JSIA)
56.
Japan Services Network (JSN)
57.
Korea Semiconductor Industry Association (KSIA)
58.
Korean Broadcasters Association
59.
Korean Film Digital Distribution Association (KFDA)
60.
Malaysian Service Providers Confederation (MSPC)
61.
Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association (MSIA)
62.
Mexican Chamber of Electronics, Telecommunications and Information Technologies
(CANIETI)
63.
Motion Picture Association (MPA)
64. Motion
Picture Producers Association of Japan
65.
National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC)
66.
New Zealand International Business Forum
67.
Philippine Exporters Confederation (PHILEXPORT)
68.
Professional & Business Services Council
69.
Papua New Guinea Chamber of Commerce and Industry
70.
Saint Lucia Coalition of Services Industries (SLCSI)
71.
Saint Kitts & Nevis Coalition of Services Industries (SKNCSI)
72.
Semiconductor & Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation, Inc.
(SEIPI)
73.
Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA)
74.
Screen Producers Australia (SPA)
75.
SPADA NZ – The Screen Production and Development Association
76.
Singapore Business Federation
77.
Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association (SSIA)
78. Sociedad de Fomento Fabril (SOFOFA)
79.
Taiwan Coalition of Services Industries (TWCSI)
80.
Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association (TSIA)
81. techUK
82.
TECHNATION Canada
83.
Technical Service Providers Association of South Africa
84. TheCityUK
85.
Trinidad and Tobago Coalition of Services Industries
86.
US-ASEAN Business Council
87.
US Council for International Business
88.
US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF)
89.
Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM)