WTO came into existence with effect from lst January 1995 as a successor of GATT having 159 members now to promote and to facilitate the international trade among the member countries to overcome various restrictions and discriminations.
GATT was the outcome of Button woods conference for the same purpose which remained in force till Dec. 1994. GATT governs trade in goods only but WTO as the successor of GATT is wider in scope governing the trade not only in goods but also in services and intellectual property rights.
Functions of WTO:
The major functions of WTO include :
(i) Promoting an environment that is encouraging to its member countries to come forward to WTO in
mitigating their grievances.
(ii) Laying down a commonly accepted code of conduct with a view to reducing trade barriers including tariffs and eliminating discriminations in international trade relations.
(iii) Acting as a dispute settlement body.
(iv) Supervising on a regular basis the operations of the
revised Agreements and Ministerial Declarations relating to goods services and TRIP’S