GENEVA (AFP) – The head of the World Trade Organization agreed yesterday with a call from French President Emmanuel Macron for reform, saying he saw a need to “strengthen” the body and “make it more effective”.
WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo has in recent months warned that the US-led trend of erecting new trade barriers and sable-rattling on commerce could hamper global growth.
He met with France’s Mr Macron on Wednesday to discuss “current global trade tensions” and the “central role of the WTO in safeguarding the stability and predictability of the trading system,” the organisation said in a statement.
