What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to quantify trade cost savings from harmonizing sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures across countries at various economic development stages.

April 27, 2026Open Access

Potential savings from NTM harmonisation - Discussion paper

Key Points

This research aims to quantify trade cost savings from harmonizing sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures across countries at various economic development stages.
Empirical analysis of trade impacts of SPS measures based on countries' economic development levels.
Quantification of potential savings from aligning trade regulations.
Distinction between internationally adopted and regionally prevalent SPS measures.
Closer regulatory frameworks could yield significant reductions in trade costs.
Savings vary depending on the economic development stage of trading partners.
Internationally adopted SPS measures generally provide larger potential savings compared to regional measures.

Abstract

Abstract This paper provides empirical support for the heterogeneous trade impact of SPS measures as a function of the countries’ stage of economic development. A key novelty is that it quantifies the potential trade cost savings attained by closer regulatory frameworks, distinguishing between SPS measures that are more generally adopted (i.e., international) and those that are less prevalent across trading partners and products (i.e., regional). Citation Sanjuán, A. I., & Philippidis, G. (2026). Potential savings from NTM harmonisation. Project deliverable BrightSpace Horizon Europe project GA Nr. 101060075. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19730554----------------- Funding acknowledgement Funded by the European Union. Grant Agreement No. 101060075. Views and opinions expressed are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. Legal notice This document was produced under the terms and conditions of Grant Agreement No. 101060075 for the European Commission. It does not necessary reflect the view of the European Union and in no way anticipates the Commission’s future policy in this area. The European Commission is not liable for any consequence stemming from the reuse of this publication. © BrightSpace, 2026 The reuse of this document is authorised under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CCBY 4.0) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This means that reuse is allowed provided appropriate credit is given and any changes are indicated. For any use or reproduction of elements that are not owned by the BrightSpace consortium, permission may need to be sought directly from the respective right holders. Project information BrightSpace Horizon Europe project Grant Agreement No. 101060075 https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101060075 CALL: Innovative governance, environmental observations and digital solutions in support of the Green Deal WORK PROGRAMME Topic ID: HORIZON-CL6-2021-GOVERNANCE-01-12 EU agriculture within a safe and just operating space and planetary boundaries BrightSpace Project coordination: Wageningen Economic Research, The Hague, NL Contact: brightspace.wser@wur.nl | Website: www.brightspace-project.eu Project duration: 1 November 2022 – 31 October 2027.

Read Full Paperexternally

Ask AI

Helpful

Bookmark

View Full Paper