According to the latest World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Monitoring Report on G20 trade measures, the World’s major economies have continued to exercise restraint in the use of trade-restrictive measures despite increasing economic uncertainty aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
During the review period covered by the report (mid-October 2021 to mid-May 2022), the estimated trade coverage of the regular import-facilitating measures introduced by G20 countries (USD 581.5 billion) far exceeded the trade coverage of import-restrictive measures (USD 18.2 billion).
The early part of the review period provided some encouraging news for a post-pandemic economic recovery, but the Omicron variant outbreak and the conflict in Ukraine had a significant impact on trade flows as result of specific trade-related measures adopted in response to the crises.
G20 members are: Argentina; Australia; Brazil; Canada; China; the European Union; France; Germany; India; Indonesia; Italy; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Mexico; the Russian Federation; Saudi Arabia; South Africa; Türkiye; the United Kingdom; and the United States.