Non‐Tariff Measures, Specific Trade Concerns and Tariff Reduction

This paper studies the determinants of the recent proliferation of Specific Trade Concerns raised at the WTO on non‐tariff trade measures ( NTM s), with a focus on sanitary and phytosanitary ( SPS ) and technical barriers to trade ( TBT s). Even though NTM s are imposed de jure to protect consumers from unhealthy products, they increase trade costs de facto . So, when tariff protection lowers, NTM s become effective barriers to trade and the exporting countries can complain at the dedicated committee at the WTO ( STC s). Therefore, we study whether STC s are raised by exporting countries as a consequence of tariff reductions in importing countries, that is when non‐tariff measures become barriers to trade. Using a recent database on STC s over the period 1996–2010, we find empirical evidence that SPS and TBT concerns are raised by exporting country as a consequence of importer's tariff cut.