WTO's trillion-dollar trade deal secures cheaper IT productsJuly 28, 2015 - 13:02 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A new global trade agreement that eliminates tariffs on more than 200 kinds of IT products should result in lower prices to technology buyers around the world as it is implemented over the next three years, according to PCWorld. The tentative deal, struck last weeek at a World Trade Organization meeting in Geneva, affects a wide variety of products ranging from smartphones, routers, and ink cartridges to video game consoles and telecommunications satellites. It covers US$1.3 trillion worth of global trade, about 7 percent of total trade today. Import duties won’t be removed immediately. They will begin to be phased out next year, and eliminated within three years, the European Commission said. The new deal extends the 1996 Information Technology Agreement that eliminated customs duties on IT products such as computers, telephones, digital cameras and their parts. The list of items covered under the new agreement includes finished products as well as manufacturing equipment and components. “This deal will cut costs for consumers and business—in particular for smaller firms, which have been hit especially hard by excessive tariffs in the past,” Cecilia Malmström, EU Trade Commissioner, said in a statement, according to PCWorld. A full list of products covered was published by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, which called the ITA expansion “great news for the American workers and businesses that design, manufacture, and export state-of-the-art technology and information products, ranging from MRI machines to semiconductors to video game consoles.” The U.S. annually exports $100 billion worth of technology products covered by the expanded product list, it said. With an agreement in place about what products will be covered, representatives from the participating countries will work out details of the plan at the WTO’s 10th Ministerial Conference in Nairobi this December, the WTO said. Top stories Yerevan will host the 2024 edition of the World Congress On Information Technology (WCIT). Rustam Badasyan said due to the lack of such regulation, the state budget is deprived of VAT revenues. Krisp’s smart noise suppression tech silences ambient sounds and isolates your voice for calls. Gurgen Khachatryan claimed that the "illegalities have been taking place in 2020." Partner news Most popular in the section | Kazakh Foreign Minister arrives in Armenia Kazakh Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu on Monday, March 18 arrived in Armenia for a two-day trip. Aliyev touts “good chances” for normalizing ties with Armenia Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has declared that there are “good chances” for normalizing relations with Armenia. Putin secures fifth term as Russian president Russian President Vladimir Putin has secured a fifth term in office through a dubious national plebiscite. Top Armenian, Indian defense officials discuss cooperation The discussions primarily focused on enhancing cooperation in the defence sector between Armenia and India. |