Landmark trade pact on slashing tech tariffs

WTO says 49 of its members including the U.S., China and the 28-country EU reached a tentative accord that caps three years of talks.

Major trade powers have reached a deal to cut tariffs on around 200 technology products, a decision that could pave the way for lower prices for consumers.

The Geneva-based World Trade Organization says 49 of its members including the United States, China and the 28-country European Union reached a tentative accord that caps three years of talks.

The products on which import duties will be scrapped under Friday’s deal include GPS navigation equipment, medical scanners and new-generation semiconductors.

The deal, which should be finalized by December, expands the scope of the 1996 IT Agreement involving 81 countries. WTO chief Roberto Azevedo called it a ‘landmark’ agreement that covers trade in products valued at over $1.3 trillion a year, or some 7 per cent of global trade.