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	Export – International Commerce

World Trade Organization – WTO


	In 1947, GATT – General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was signed with the objective of regulating the trade relations between the signing countries, among them Brazil. One of the main results of the final round of multilateral negotiations in GATT, the Uruguay Round – (1986 -1994), was the creation in January 1995, of the World Trade Organization (WTO) .

The WTO strengthened and perfected the multilateral system of trade following the end of the Second World War with the purpose of guaranteeing free competition between the member nations, eliminating the obstacles to international trade and permitting increasing ample access of businesses to the foreign market of goods and services.

The WTO incorporated the GATT rules, which was restricted to the trading of goods, and added the sectors of Services and Intellectual Property to the field of norms.

Constitute attributes to IMC:

Supervise the implementation of the rules agreed in the multinational trade system area.
Act as a forum for trade negotiations
Proportion mechanisms for the solution of controversy
Supervise the trade policies of the 134 member nations
Supply technical assistance and courses for countries under development, in trade subjects..


	The General System of preferences (SGP) created in 1970 within the Conference of the United Nations on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), permits that developed countries concede exemption or reduction of import taxes on determined products from developing countries, Brazil among them.

the sphere of SGP, developed countries offer, without demanding reciprocal tariff preferences for a determined list of products ( SGP is a unilateral concession of developed countries to countries under development.

According to data from SECEX,, of the total of US$10.8 billions of Brazilian exports to the USA, in 1999, US$2.2 billions ( 20.3%) corresponded to sales with preferential treatment in SGP. In the case of the European Union, of a total of US$13.7 billions, US$6.4 billions ( 46.6%) benefited from SGP in 1999. For Japan last year the benefit from SGP US$384.9 millions (17.47%), of a total of US$2.1 billions. For Canada, from a total of US$513.1 millions of Brazilian exports US$ 255 millions (49.7%) correspond to the sales benefited by SGP.

To impede that the benefits from the reductions in SGP tariffs are appropriated by other countries, a certificate of origin is demanded, “Form A”, a standard model which was approved by UNCTAD. The document attests to the compliance of the requisites of origin, and is issued by Bank of Brazil agencies which render service related to foreign trade. In order to prove the nationality of the product that is being exported (whether it in fact originates from the benefiting country and thus avoiding fraudulent SGP concessions, the preference signing countries adopt a regime of origin that varies from signing country to signing country. The regimes of origin are important mainly to enable the preferential benefit to those countries in which the goods benefited were produced, from imported components or material, and are categorized as products not totally obtained in the beneficiary country. Some SGP signing countries, among which is the USA, adopt as a basic rule the criteria of a minimum percentage of national components that can be added to the final products, in order to benefit from the preferential treatment. North America, for example, determines that the sum of the value of the components and the direct costs of the operations of the production costs be not less than 35% of the final “ex-factory” price of the goods to be exported under SGP


	The agreement of the Global System of Trade Preferences – GSTP was finalized in April, 988 in Belgrade and came into force in Brazil on May 25th, 1991. Through GSTP, 48 countries under development that ratified the agreement have begun to exchange trade concessions among themselves.


	Participants in GSTP: Angola, Argyle, Argentina, Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Cameroon, Qatar, Chile, Singapore, Colombia, Cuba, Egypt, Ecuador, Philippines, Ghana, Guiana, Guinea, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraqi, Yugoslavia, Libya, Malay, Morocco, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of Korea, Popular Democratic Republic of Korea, Tanzania, Romania, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, Trinidad-Tobago, Tunisia, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam, Congo Republic e Zimbabwe.

In the GSTP regime, Brazilian exporters can obtain advantages by way of the margins of preferential percentages applied on the tariff of imports in force in the signing country, for the products on the list of concessions.
To obtain the preferential treatment it is necessary:

To obtain the preferential treatment it is necessary:

a. That the product is on the list of concessions annexed to Decree Nr, 194, dated 21/08/91;

b. That the exporter satisfies the Rules of Origin; and

c. That the exporter obtains the Certificates of Origin – SGPC from the state federation of the accredited industry...

International trade has been working side by side for the liberation of trade flow of goods and services and others for the formation of integrated trade zones, which can present the following form:

Free trade areas: the barriers of trading goods between the member countries are eliminated, but they maintain autonomy in the administration of their trade policy;

Customs Union:the inter-block circulation of goods and services is free, the commercial policy is uniform and the member countries use a common external tariff.

Common Market: Is the equivalent of the Customs Union, but also permits the free circulation of productive factors (Labour and capital);

Economic Union: A later stage of the common market, which contemplates the strict co-ordination of macroeconomic policies of the member countries and eventually the adoption of a single currency.

Southern Cone Market – MERCOSUL

The Southern Cone Market (MERCOSUL) was created by the Asuncion Treaty (1991) its legal founding document signed by four member countries: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Bolivia and Chile are associates of MERCOSUL


	With the signature of the Protocol of Ouro Preto in December, 1994, MERCOSUL received legal personality in international law: The Protocol recognized the block competence to negotiate in its own name, agreements with third party countries, groups of countries and international organizations. In this context must be mentioned the Four Inter-regional Agreement of Economic Co-operation, signed in 1995 between MERCOSUL and the European Union. In the process of harmonic tributes, MERCOSUL contemplates the elimination of Customs tariffs and non-tariff restrictions for the circulation of goods between the member countries, with a view to guaranteeing, in the future, the free circulation of goods, services and productive factors in one common market. The creation of a Common External Tariff – CET ( which characterizes a Customs Union), implemented to a large extent since January 1st 1995, and the adoption of common trade policies in relation to third party countries represent significant advances in the integration process. Moreover, to attend the compliance of internal economic policies, peculiar to each member country, a list of tributary exceptions for determined products was created, the tariffs of which must converge with TEC by 2006

Latin American Integration Association – ALADI/LAIA

The Latin American Integration Association (ALADI) was established in 1980 with the signing of the Montevideo Treaty, and is comprised of thirteen member countries: the MERCOSUL countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) and the Andes Community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela), as well as Chile, Mexico and Cuba. ALADI acts with the expectation of creating a free trade area among its members by 2005.


	Under the shelter of the Montevideo Treaty, the member countries of ALADI signed various specific trade agreements, including Complementary Economic Agreement (ACE). The list of products that benefit from the tariff preferences of ALADI and their respective codes are to be found in the SISCOMEX tables. In order that the preferential treatment be effectively conceded to the negotiated products, it is necessary that the exporters obtain Certificates of Origin in the state federations of industry, state federations of trade or other organs accredited by ALADI

Andes Community

The Andes Community was created in 1969, with the signing of the Cartagena Agreement which became known as the Andes Pact. This is a sub regional organization integrating five countries: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela.


	In December 1996, MERCOSUL celebrated the Complementary Economic Agreement (ACE – 36), with Bolivia, by which it became an associated member of MERCOSUL. The agreement signed with Bolivia aims at the complete liberation of trade goods, with eight to ten years as well as future negotiations in the service sector, intellectual property governmental purchases and others. On July 3rd, 1999 the Partial Reaching of Complimentary Economic Agreement (ACE -39) between the Governments of the Republics of Columbia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela on the one hand and Brazil on the other. It came into force on August 16th, 1999 and established tariff preferences for 2739 products. ACE – 39 constitutes the first step for the creation of a free trade area between MERCOSUL and the Andes Community.

North American Free Trade Agreement – NAFTA

In December 1992 Canada, USA and México signed the North American Free Trade Agreement – NAFTA which came into force on January 1st,1994. The agreement envisages gradual reduction of Customs Tariffs in trade goods between the three countries within ten years.

European Union – EU

The European Union, the agreements of which go back to 1957 (the year of signing the Rome Treaty), includes today fifteen Member States: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, The Netherlands, Portugal, UK and Sweden. The 1957 treaties were submitted for three revisions: in 1987, (Single Act, which established the basis for the creation of the single European market as from 1992), the Maastricht Treaty which envisaged the economic and monetary union of the member States) and in 1997 ( the Amsterdam Treaty, especially focused on social terms and human rights)

The main objectives of the EU for the coming years treat the following themes:

Execution of the dispositions of the Amsterdam Treaty;

Increase the Union to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe candidates for adhesion.

Implantation of the Euro (single currency)

The adoption of the Euro as the common currency is in three stages. The first stage ended on December 31st, 1998, preparing the markets and operating agencies of the eleven countries that opted to comprise the Euro Area (Denmark, UK and Sweden opted not to participate, for the moment) and attended the criteria established for such in Maastricht (Greece still has not complied). The second stage began on January 1st, 1999, when the Euro was adopted as the single currency

European Free Trade Association – EFTA

EFTA, created in 1960 has as member countries today only Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.


	Fonte: Departamento de Promoção Comercial (DPR) do Ministério das Relações Exteriores