The Regulation of Subsidies Within the General Agreement on Trade in Services of the WTO : Problems and Prospects

The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) extends the multilateral trading system to services. Little is said in the GATS about subsidies, beyond stipulating that subsidies are subject to the existing provisions, including the most-favoured-nation and national-treatment principles, and that Members shall enter into negotiations with a view to developing the disciplines necessary to avoid the trade distorting effects of subsidies.