White Paper Trade Rules and the Digital Economy Key Points and Findings

Huawei | Trade and the Digital Economy | White Paper Key Points and Findings
Key Points Explained
01
The WTO Work Program on Electronic Commerce in 1998 initiated a program of reflection
by WTO members on how best to address the trade‐related aspects of the then nascent
internet economy, and focused predominantly on the need to negotiate new rules on e‐
commerce. Likewise, the recently completed TPP negotiations, the outcome of which is uncertain at the
time of writing, and the recently stalled TiSA negotiations have also included dedicated provisions intended
to liberalize cross‐border trade in services and establish disciplines on e‐commerce. However there are
other areas and rules that affect the digital economy that also need to be addressed both at the WTO as
well as in free trade agreements. Also at the WTO we had some progress very early (in 1997) on an
Information Technology Agreement (ITA, recently updated in 2015) which saw tariffs eliminated on a large
number of IT products among participating WTO members. In the TPP we saw a range of new provisions
addressing different aspects of the digital economy beyond e‐commerce, such as in the chapter on
technical barriers to trade (rules on conformity assessment procedures, encryption and electromagnetic
compatibility), as well as a new chapter on regulatory coherence, and new disciplines on the cross‐border
supply of services. The more holistic approach taken in the TPP, although not perfect, is much more suited
to addressing the plethora of trade‐related regulatory issues that different actors across the very broadranging
value chain that represents the digital economy are increasingly encountering. We hope for and
advocate a similarly broad approach in other negotiating fora such as the WTO and RCEP.
02
We view TiSA and RCEP as two negotiating fora that could, if we are lucky, see the
emergence of new rules that would be of enormous benefit to the digital economy,
particularly on issues such as cross‐border trade in services and e‐commerce for TiSA and a
whole range of issues in RCEP including those mentioned above in Point 1. We also would like to express
our support for an ambitious new negotiating agenda at the WTO in the context of the now very mature
Work Program on Electronic Commerce. Also at the WTO we would welcome new negotiations, building
on the work of the ITA, on non‐tariff barriers in the IT and ITC sectors, especially with respect to technical
regulations that rely on international standards and the adoption of an MFN obligation for conformity
assessment procedures (so that if an IT or ITC product is certified in one WTO member it can be exported
to any other member without further testing). Like we have seen for the ITA, new rules on non‐tariff
barriers could first be agreed on a plurilateral basis with an open membership clause.
03
We at Huawei have come from very humble beginnings and fought many existential battles
to become the global industry leader that we are today. Along the way we have benefitted
from the openness that has characterized much of the global economy and many of the
markets in which we have been privileged to serve our customers and build relationships with our
stakeholders. This journey has also contributed in no small way to the formation and strengthening of our
core values and guiding principles, which include support for free trade, open and fair competition on a
level playing field and the protection of intellectual property rights. These principles will continue to guide
us and we will advocate for them in all the markets we do business in, both at home and abroad.
04
We also recognize that trade rules can be about more than just trade and investment
liberalization or imposing disciplines to curb protectionism. Rather, we see trade rules and
the market opening that they foster, as also acting to support development outcomes and
greater inclusion into regional and global value chains of small and medium sized enterprises, as well as
micro businesses. We favor leveraging existing and future trade rules to not only bridge the digital divide
but also expand the reach of the digital economy, to create a more equitable and fairer world economic
order where anyone who chooses to participate can. The digital economy has been the harbinger of many
benefits and all the world’s people should be able to partake in these new and exciting technologies.
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