Institutional Coherence between WTO and IMF: From the Perspective of the Trade Institution

The intertwined relationship between international financial institutions such as the IMF or the World Bank and international trade institutions such as the GATT and the WTO has become by far closer and more complex than ever. In particular, when the roles of the IMF and the World Bank have increased as a result of the recent financial and exchange crisis that swept over the substantial part of the world economy, the new Bretton Woods regime within which it now embraces the WTO has raised a serious concern on coherence and harmonization with respect to the areas of overlapping functions and mandates. The recent agreement between the IMF and the WTO can be considered an important advance in this endeavor as the first outcome to formalize the institutional coherence. The substance of the agreement, however, reveals the lack of the structural mechanism to address various coherence issues. I hope that the present review and discussion can initiate more in-depth research and contemplation for this agenda that would benefit future efforts in the IMF or in a new trade negotiation under the aegis of the WTO.