At a meeting of the Committee on Balance-of-Payments Restrictions held on 5 May, WTO members discussed the United States’ new notification regarding the imposition of import surcharges to address the country’s serious balance-of-payments deficits. The United States said the surcharges took effect on 24 February 2026 and will expire on 24 July 2026, unless extended by an act of Congress. Members welcomed the transparency of the United States and its readiness to engage in consultations in line with WTO rules.

5 May 2026

The fourth review of the trade policies and practices of Belize takes place on 4 and 6 May 2026. The basis for the review is a report by the WTO Secretariat and a report by the Government of Belize.

4 May 2026

WTO members reviewed global cotton market trends and the path ahead for the cotton sector at meetings in Geneva on 4 May. The meetings follow the high-level cotton event at the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Cameroon in March. Delegations noted commitments announced at MC14 to invest in African countries moving up the cotton value chain and stressed the vital contribution of cotton to international trade and its potential to foster sustainable development.

4 May 2026

WTO members held the first regular meeting of the Committee on Fisheries Subsidies on 1 May 2026, marking a milestone in the implementation of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. They approved various decisions on the functioning of the Committee.

1 May 2026

The WTO has opened online registration for this year’s Public Forum, titled Powering the Future, which will take place at the WTO premises in Geneva from 15 to 17 September. It has also launched a call for proposals for the event, which this year will focus on services trade.

30 April 2026

At regular and special meetings of the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM) on 30 April 2026, improving transparency through the timely and complete submission of subsidy notifications was once again a central theme of the Committee’s work. The Chair, Jungsoo Hur of the Republic of Korea, emphasized the critical importance of transparency for the effective operation of the Committee and expressed concern about the continued low level of compliance with notification obligations. He strongly encouraged members to submit their outstanding notifications as soon as possible.

30 April 2026

The WTO’s Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices met on 28 April 2026 to review members’ latest notifications of new, amended or previously reviewed anti-dumping laws and regulations as well as reports on anti-dumping actions.

28 April 2026

Canada is providing CAD 500,000 (approximately CHF 286,000) to the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) to strengthen sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) capacity of public and private sector stakeholders in developing and least-developed countries. The contribution will support STDF activities that help countries meet international food safety and plant and animal health standards and facilitate safe trade, based on the STDF Strategy for 2025-2030.

28 April 2026

Implementation of a WTO initiative to strengthen use of the ePing SPS & TBT Platform is now under way, helping governments, exporters and other stakeholders better track and engage in evolving product requirements affecting international trade. Funded by the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), the three year project focuses on five African countries and aims to enhance transparency, predictability and market access.

27 April 2026

At a meeting on 27 April, the WTO Committee on Safeguards reviewed safeguard actions covering 38 products, 12 of which were steel/metal products. These actions were notified by members since the Committee's last meeting in October 2025. Several members expressed their views on the European Union's and the United Kingdom's actions concerning steel products. The EU investigation on grain-oriented electrical steel and measure on ferro-alloying elements also generated interventions by several members. The outgoing Chair, Ms Milagros Miranda Rojas (Peru), thanked members for their participation in the Committee.

27 April 2026