WTO Bad/Good/Indifferent Bad: The U.S. Congressional Research Service has concluded that trade war payments and COVID relief payments to farmers have likely exceeded WTO limits on such cash transfers. U.S. officials retort that that they are legal. However, the real problem is that the U.S. has not been notifying Geneva of its cash transfers to farmers for the past couple of years. Since the U.S. has made a big issue about other WTO members failing to meet their notification obligations, this is at least hypocritical. If the payments are legal, why not report them? Good: The U.S. correctly complained in Geneva this week that the WTO has spent money on an effort to track members’ compliance with United Nations’ adopted sustaina...
Key Market Insights The broad market is locked in on this week’s Trump-Xi meeting in Beijing, but this is no longer just a trade summit. Increasingly, the meeting is becoming tied directly to Iran, energy security, and the growing global economic fallout from disruptions through the Strai...
From WPI Consulting
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.