The members of World Trade Organisation representing major exporters of information technology products have agreed to eliminate tariffs on a total of 201 products worth over $1.3tn per year.
The items account for approximately 10% of total global trade.
The members have agreed on the timetable for implementing the deal at the WTO’s 10th Ministerial Conference in Nairobi on Wednesday evening.
Approximately 65% of tariff lines will be fully eliminated by July 1, 2016. Most of the remaining tariff lines will be completely phased out in four stages over three years. This means that by 2019, almost all imports of the relevant products will be duty free.
Negotiations were conducted by 53 members, including both developed and developing countries, which account for nearly 90% of world trade in these products.
All the 162 members are expected to benefit from the agreement as they would enjoy duty-free access to the markets of the members.
Among the products are new-generation semi-conductors, GPS navigation systems, medical products which include magnetic resonance imaging machines, machine tools for manufacturing printed circuits, telecommunications satellites and touch screens.
The agreement also contains a commitment to work to tackle non-tariff barriers in the IT sector, and to keep the list of products covered under review to determine whether further expansion may be needed to reflect future technological developments.
The agreement is an expansion of the 1996 Information Technology Agreement which involves 82 members. In 2012, members recognised that technological innovation had advanced to such an extent that many new categories of IT products were not covered by the existing agreement. Negotiations began in 2012 to expand the coverage of the accord.
