A critical review of recent U.S. trade policies that have failed to enforce sufficient reciprocity and overall trade balance, with suggestions for policies that foster a more balanced and realistic pattern of world trade growth.

Prospects for the accession of the People's Republic of China to the World Trade Organization in the near future have diminished considerably. Recently, many policymakers predicted that the PRC would most likely enter the WTO no later than 1999 or 2000. Given a variety of recent economic and political developments in both Asia and the West (particularly the United States), it now seems likely that the negotiations concerning China's accession will be much more protracted.

The History and Future of the World Trade Organization is a comprehensive account of the economic, political and legal issues surrounding the creation of the WTO and its evolution. Fully illustrated with colour and black-and-white photos dating back to the early days of trade negotiations, the publication reviews the WTO's achievements as well as the challenges faced by the organisation, and identifies the key questions that WTO members need to address in the future. The book describes the intellectual roots of the trading system, membership of the WTO and the growth of the Geneva trade community, trade negotiations and the development of coalitions among the membership, and the WTO's relations with other international organisations and civil society. Also covered are the organisation's robust dispute settlement rules, the launch and evolution of the Doha Round, the rise of regional trade agreements, and the leadership and management of the WTO.

This is a comprehensive overview of the law and practice of the World Trade Organization. It begins with the institutional law of the WTO, moving eventually to the consequences of globalization. New chapters on Trade in Agriculture and on Government Procurement and Trade.