GIVEN that businesses increasingly disperse production chains across the globe, conventional measurements of countries' exports and imports no longer provide a fully accurate picture of international trade. In this backdrop, the OECD is hosting a two-day meet in Paris where policy makers are expected to discuss how much donor aid helps producers in poor countries. Policy-makers and experts from developing and developed economies will discuss effective management and implementation of the Trade for Aid initiative in the light of changing patterns of production and other current challenges.

The sessions will cover topics such as delivering and managing aid for trade, easing the constraints to trade expansion, promoting regional aid-for-trade programmes, reducing border barriers, and engaging the private sector.  The conference will be opened by OECD Secretary General Angel Gurría tomorrow, followed by keynote addresses by EU Trade Commissioner Karel de Gucht and WTO Director General Pascal Lamy.

New data and analysis of trade, in value added terms, from the OECD and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) challenge many of the current assumptions about trade relations between countries. 

The new Trade in Value Added data and analysis, including a number of individual Country Notes (viz Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, UK, and USA) will be released on16 January 2013.