ABSTRACT:
In carrying out its objective of eliminating barriers to international trade, the WTO has dealt almost exclusively with ridding its member countries of government-created phenomena that obstruct free trade, such as tariffs. It was not until the 1996 Ministerial Conference in Singapore that member countries identified businesses as a source of distortion in international free trade. It reflected the increasing perception of policymakers that private anticompetitive behaviors may continue to constrain “market access,” even when official barriers created by border measures have come down. The main thrust behind the WTO initiative was based on the belief of some participants that, despite trade liberalization achieved through GATT/WTO; domestic policies such as competition policy could act as non-tariff barriers to trade. A particular business behavior is anticompetitive domestically if it reduces the domestic supply of an industry. Similarly, a particular business behavior is anticompetitive internationally if it reduces the global supply of that industry. It was laid down that strengthening of domestic anti-trust policies and developing mutual trust through some common understanding of competition issues would promote greater world trade through the resolution of trade conflicts, the curbing of anti-competitive practices by large multinational corporations (MNCs) and international cartels, with which it is difficult for a single country to deal, the enhancement of and enhancing development as well as the long-term competitiveness of firms