"Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des études supérieures en vue de l'obtention du grade de Maîtrise en droit, option droit commercial". Ce mémoire a été accepté à l'unanimité et classé parmi les 10% des mémoires de la discipline. / Les investissements étrangers directs (IED), définis comme étant un transfert de capital durable d'un pays source à une entreprise formée ou exploitée sur le territoire du pays hôte, sont importants pour le développement économique international. Vu l'importance de ce phénomène, la Chine a placé les IED au premier plan de sa politique d'ouverture et les organisations internationales telles que l'Organisation mondiale du commerce tentent de mettre en place un cadre pour régir les IED. Les positions de négociations sont toutefois très difficiles à concilier et la Chine occupe depuis son accession en 2001 un rôle d'intermédiaire entre les positions des pays industrialisés et des pays en développement. Le droit international a par ailleurs un impact sur le droit interne d'un pays comme la Chine, tout comme son bagage idéologique et culturel. L'analyse du droit interne chinois nous permet d'évaluer la protection qui est accordée aux IED et au marché chinois, ce dernier ayant pour effet de traiter de manière discriminatoire les IED. Les règles restreignant les secteurs d'activités dans lesquels des projets d'IED sont autorisés, tout autant que celles établissant les structures corporatives pouvant être utilisées ou celles régissant les contrats nécessaires aux opérations de l'entreprise à investissement étranger ont essentiellement pour but de protéger le marché chinois et créent donc de la discrimination à l'égard des IED. Les règles prévoyant des incitatifs fiscaux pour les entreprises à investissement étranger ont à l'inverse pour effet d'accorder un traitement privilégié aux projets d'IED en fonction de zones géographiques et de secteurs d'activités dans le cadre de la politique de développement économique de la Chine. Ce droit interne doit toutefois être correctement appliqué pour avoir les effets escomptés sur le traitement des IED. En Chine, on ne peut pas conclure que l'état de droit soit en place, les relations interpersonnelles jouant encore un rôle capital. De ce fait, les nombreuses lois, en apparence complètes, qui continuent d'avoir comme principal objectif de protéger le marché chinois, n'accordent pas la sécurité juridique à laquelle pourrait s'attendre un investisseur occidental. Le constat: la protection accordée aux IED est insuffisante en Chine bien qu'elle s'améliore rapidement et un traitement souvent discriminatoire des IED subsiste dans le but de protéger le marché. Il nous apparaît donc qu'il n'y a pas encore d'équilibre entre la protection des investisseurs et la protection du marché chinois. / Foreign direct investments (FDI), a sustainable transfer of capital from one country to an enterprise formed or operated by the foreign investor on the territory of the host country are very important for the economic development at an international level. China has made FDI a top priority for its open door policy. Given the importance of FDI, international organisations such as the World trade organization are attempting to put in place a convention to deal with FDI. The negotiating positions are hard to reconcile but China has adopted, since its accession to the WTO in 2001, the role of the intermediary between the developed and the developing worlds. International law as weil as the political and cultural backgrounds of China, have an important impact on intemallaws regarding FDI. By analyzing Chinese laws on FDI it is possible to determine the level of protection granted to FDI and to the Chinese market, this second element having a direct impact on a discriminatory treatment of foreign investors in China. Rules regarding the sectors of activities, the corporate structures available to FDI and the laws regarding contracts necessary for the business operations essentially have for objective the protection of the Chinese market and consèquently, have for effect to discriminate FDI. In contrast, tax legislation applicable to FDI has a positive impact granting them preferential treatments in conjunction with geographic zones or sectors of activities and thus also has the effect of responding to China's commercial and development imperatives. Although legislation pertaining to FDI in China may appear complete, laws must be applied properly in order to have their expected effects on the treatment of FDI. Because of many factors such as the cultural background of China, there is no rule of law in China; relationships are still very important and laws come second. Consequently, the laws and regulations, even if many of them have the objective of protecting the market, fail to protect the FDI properly on the Chinese territory. Our conclusion is that protection granted to FDI is insufficient although it is improving rapidly and the treatment of FDI is in many cases still discriminatory in order to protect the Chinese market. It seems that the protection of the investors and the protection of the Chinese market have yet to reach a balance.

This thesis analyses a trade dispute between the US and the EU concerning geographical indications, which was brought to the World Trade Organization in 1999. It deals with the differences between the american and the european approach towards geographical indications, it describes the background of the dispute, its various stages and consequences.

À l'Organisation Mondiale du Commerce (OMC), le Cycle de Doha pour le Développement, lancé en 2001, achoppe sur le volet agricole, en particulier sur le dossier coton. La thèse vise à analyser, catégoriser et évaluer les impacts des positions dans les négociations en cours du Cycle de Doha pour le Développement, émanant des États membres de l'OMC, des organisations non gouvernementales, des universitaires et des institutions internationales. L'originalité de l'évaluation réalisée est accentuée par la prise en compte d'un scénario alternatif qui tient davantage compte du traitement spécial différencié en faveur des pays en développement. Face au scénario de statu quo de l'Accord de l'Uruguay Round, les scénarios actuellement proposés sont ceux du projet de modalités révisé de Falconer de décembre 2008 sans disposition particulière pour le coton, du projet de modalités révisé de Falconer de décembre 2008 avec des dispositions particulières pour le coton (position « C4 »), et des propositions respectives de l'Union Européenne et des États-Unis. Le scénario alternatif que nous proposons intègre l'amélioration de l'accès du coton des pays africains au marché chinois et le renforcement du soutien domestique dans les pays cotonniers d'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Centre. Mais l'originalité de ce scénario additionnel procède de l'affectation des économies réalisées par les pays développés, dans la réduction de leurs soutiens domestiques, pour constituer un fonds de solidarité internationale de soutien à la filière coton des pays en développement. Par souci de comparaison, le scénario de libéralisation totale des échanges est également pris en compte, même s'il relève du domaine purement théorique. Nous avons utilisé le modèle ATPSM (Agricultural Trade Policy Simulation Model) pour mesurer les impacts des sept scénarios en termes de production et d'échanges internationaux. Notre évaluation intègre aussi la mesure de l'équité, en nous appuyant sur l'approche de Stiglitz et Charlton. Nos résultats montrent que le scénario alternatif augmente le prix aux producteurs de coton de 10,8%, mieux que les propositions du C4 (9,0%) et des USA (6,1%). Le scénario alternatif augmente le prix mondial (8,1%) et le volume des exportations de coton (2,3%), certes à un degré moindre que la proposition du C4 mais davantage que celle des États-Unis. Au regard du critère d'équité, le scénario alternatif est aussi favorable que les autres scénarios et mieux que le statu quo de l'Uruguay Round. Le scénario alternatif présente les éléments favorables à un compromis pour conclure le Cycle de Doha, avec des effets bénéfiques pour les pays en développement et l'introduction d'un mécanisme nouveau de solidarité internationale. / Agriculture, especially cotton, causes contention in the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Doha Development Agenda (DDA) since 2001. This study analyses and provides quantitative estimates of the likely economics impacts of various scenarios. We propose an alternative scenario further based on the principle of special and differential treatment provided to developing countries. We consider seven key scenarios in this study: (1) the Uruguay Round agreements, (2) Falconer' negotiation draft, revised in December 2008 but without special measures for cotton, (3) Similar Falconer's draft but including special measures for cotton as proposed by the C4 Group, (4) the European Union position, (5) the United States position, (6) our alternative scenario of agreements and (7) the total liberalization even if ambitious in scope. Our alternative scenario lies on the improvement of the access of African cotton into the Chinese market and on the strengthening of domestic support to cotton production in West and Central Africa. This scenario is original by considering the set up of a new fund for international solidarity through the subsidy savings implemented by developed countries. We use the Agricultural trade Policy Simulation Model (ATPSM) to evaluate the economic effect and the Stiglitz and Charlton theory of equity for equity assessment. The results showed that our alternative scenario increases the world cotton price by 8.1%, the producer price by 10.8% which is higher than the Falconer' negotiation draft with special measures for cotton (9.0%) and the United States position (6.1%). With regard to the equity criteria, our alternative scenario is as attractive as the other scenarios in comparison with the Uruguay Round agreements scenario. The alternative scenario can help to conclude the WTO-Doha Development Agenda. This scenario takes into account some key elements of a compromise between major actors of WTO, and provides provisions for and international fund to help the west and central Africa cotton sectors.

The thesis deals with the current round of WTO negotiations. The aim of thesis is to identify the most important milestones of Doha Round development. Particular chapters are devoted to identified milestones, which are the most important ministerial conferences. The thesis describes the process and the outcomes of these conferences and the potential impact of outputs on international trade.

The goal of my diploma thesis is to describe the influence of ECJ decision making on the common commercial policy ("CCP") of EU. Specifically my thesis examines what factors influence ECJ decision making about direct effect of trade agreements implementing CCP. These factors are applied on several treaties, where the court has not yet decided on their potential direct effect and on a present case at ECJ on direct effect of WTO treaties. With regard to the goal of my thesis an important part of my thesis deals with the development of ECJ decision making. Methods applied in my thesis are analysis and comparison of selected judgements that influence the CCP of EU. After proper analysis I found out that the main motiv behind ECJ decision making is that, if the negotiating position of EU is to be deteriorated, the ECJ is likely to find that the treaty does not have direct effect. Other factors are of secondary character. Examining the influence of decision making of ECJ on direct effect of trade agreements is important, because the role of ECJ influences the legal certainty of subjects about direct applicability of international trade treaties.

Masters disertation entitled Brazil's Trade Policies offers a complex economic characteristics of the country, with a special accent on the external trade. The paper shows Brazil's external trade commodity and territorial structure, evaluates its external trade policies and also its position towards trade liberalization.

O principal objetivo deste trabalho é entender como coalizões de países em desenvolvimento são bem-sucedidas nas negociações do GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) e da Organização Mundial de Comércio (OMC). Normalmente, sustenta-se que coalizões temáticas são mais bem-sucedidas do que grupos abrangentes (Higgot e Cooper, 1990; Cooper, Higgot e Nossal, 1990); e que coalizões com maiores recursos de poder são mais bem-sucedidas do que grupos fracos (Narlikar, 2003). Como hipótese alternativa, sugerimos que quanto maior for o grau de abertura comercial da coalizão - ((exportações+importações)/PIB) - maior será a chance de elas serem bemsucedidas nas negociações do GATT/OMC. Utilizaremos uma abordagem multimétodos (qualitativa e quantitativa) para realizar nossa pesquisa. Analisaremos um número (N) médio (entre 28 a 39 casos) de coalizões internacionais para descobrir quais as principais causas dos sucessos e fracassos destes grupos de países. Codificaremos a variável dependente (sucesso versus fracasso) conforme as descrições de casos particulares conduzidos por pesquisadores independentes. A variável independente categórica (coalizões temáticas versus abrangentes) será mensurada segundo procedimento semelhante. Por fim, o PIB agregado das coalizões (nossa medida de poder) e a abertura comercial agregada e abertura comercial média das coalizões (nossas medidas de abertura comercial) foram coletadas na base de dados Penn World Table 6.2. Os trabalhos que conhecemos sobre o tema utilizam a abordagem qualitativa de maneira pura, especialmente estudos de casso. Assim, até onde sabemos, este trabalho realizará a primeira análise estatística sobre o tema. / The main goal of this study is to understand how developing country coalitions obtain benefits in the GATT/WTO negotiations. Usually it is argued that issue-based coalitions are more successful than broad-based groups (Higgot and Cooper, 1990; Cooper, Higgot and Nossal, 1990), and that powerful coalitions are more successful than weaker ones (Narlikar, 2003). Alternatively, we suggest that the greater the degree of trade openness - ((exports+imports)/GDP) - the greater the chance that they will succeed in the GATT/WTO negotiations. We use a mix-method approach (qualitative and quantitative) to conduct our research. We will analyze a medium-N (from 28 to 39) cases of international coalitions to find out the main causes of coalitions\' successes and failures. We will code our dependent variable (success versus failure) according to cases studies conducted by independent researchers. Our categorical independent variable (issue-based versus broad-based coalitions) will be measured adopting the same procedure. Finally, aggregate GDP - our measure of power -, aggregate trade openness and mean aggregate trade openness of the coalitions - our measures of trade openness - were collected in the Penn World Table 6.2. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first statistical analysis on the subject.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement system is facing unprecedented challenges, following the United States (US) decision to block the appointment of all Appellate Body members. The US has justified its blocking tactic, already implemented since 2017 by raising several procedural and substantive concerns with the Appellate Body's failure to follow WTO rules. On 10 December 2019, the Appellate Body was forced to suspend its activities after the second terms of two of the remaining three members expired. While the WTO dispute settlement system continues to function at the panel stage, the Appellate Body is currently unable to review appeals because it lacks the minimum number of three members required to establish a division. In addition, the collapse of the Appellate Body means that any party to a dispute can block the adoption of a panel report by filing a notice to appeal which is likely to remain in limbo for an indefinite period. Numerous studies have discussed the Appellate Body crisis and its implications for the WTO dispute settlement system. Few, however, have critically analysed the validity of the concerns that the US has raised about the Appellate Body's work over the past few years. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to discuss and critically analyse these concerns to determine whether the Appellate Body has indeed strayed from its limited mandate. In addition, the research will provide recommendations on how to save the appellate stage and ensure that appeals are resolved while WTO members attempt to find permanent solutions to this unprecedented crisis.

博士(経営法) / 甲第509号 / 182p / Hitotsubashi University(一橋大学)

The member states of European Union (EU) and a group of African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states are currently negotiating for new trading agreements compatible with World Trade Organization‘s (WTO) rules. Whereas both the EU and the ACP states are in agreement that the new trading arrangements must be WTO compatible, there is no consensus on the format of the new trading agreements. The EU has insisted that the new trading arrangements should be in the form of free trade agreements, established under Article XXIV of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Unlike the previous EU – ACP trade agreements which were non – reciprocal, Article XXIV requires that the new trading agreements should be reciprocal. Consequently the EU has gone ahead to negotiate for reciprocal Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with some of the ACP states. Some ACP countries which are opposed to reciprocity have proposed that the new trading arrangements should be established under the provisions of Enabling Clause. Others have suggested that EU should attempt to apply for a WTO waiver. The Cotonou Agreement, under which the new trading agreements are being negotiated, provides that in case of those countries which are not ready to negotiate for EPAs, the EU should examine alternative possibilities, in order to provide these countries with a new framework for trade which is equivalent to their existing situation and in conformity with WTO rules. So far no alternative trading arrangements have been proposed. Although some ACP countries have agreed to negotiate for Economic Partnership Agreements under article XXIV of GAAT, there is no consensus on the interpretation of key provisions of Article XXIV. Under Article XXIV, the parties are required to remove substantially all trade barriers between themselves within reasonable time. The meaning of the phrases 'substantially all' and 'reasonable time‘ has remained controversial with each party giving an interpretation that favours its interests. Lack of consensus on the meaning of these phrases has hindered the conclusion of negotiations for EPAs. In a nutshell, the question of WTO compatibility presents the biggest hurdle to the conclusion of the new trading arrangements between the EU and the ACP group. This paper is an evaluation of the options available to the ACP countries to conclude WTO compatible trading arrangements with the EU. Chapter one of this paper is an introductory chapter which offers an overview of the entire paper. Chapter two sets out in details the historical background of the economic relationship between the EU and the ACP states. This chapter illustrates the historical background from which the new trading agreements have evolved to help the reader understand certain key features of the current economic partnership agreements. Chapter three looks at the GATT/WTO provisions relevant to the establishment of WTO compatible trading arrangements between EU and ACP countries. Particular emphasis is placed on Article XXIV, the Enabling Clause and the WTO waiver. Chapter four is the main chapter in which the paper explores the possibilities of concluding WTO compatible trading agreements under Article XXIV, Enabling clause and the WTO waiver. Chapter five draws the conclusions of this paper. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Centre for Human Rights / unrestricted