Recently, the Metrology Department of the General Administration received a TBT measure notification from the WTO/TBT National Consultation Point regarding the Peru Metrology Standard Draft PNMP0102012: Non Continuous Accumulated Automatic Weighing (Accumulated Hopper Weighing), a WTO member. The draft of the Peruvian measurement standard for notification specifies the requirements and testing methods for non continuous cumulative automatic weighing scales (cumulative hopper scales), as well as the requirements and standardized testing procedures for evaluating weighing and technical parameters in a unified and traceable manner, with the aim of ensuring that consumers, suppliers, and regulatory authorities are accurately informed. The Metrology Department will organize a review of the notification.
TBT, also known as Technical Barriers to Trade, is the main manifestation of non-tariff barriers. It refers to the potential unnecessary obstacles to international trade caused by improper formulation or implementation of technical regulations, standards, conformity assessment procedures, labeling, marking systems, and other technical requirements by countries or regions.
The WTO/TBT Agreement is the abbreviation of the World Trade Organization Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. The WTO/TBT Agreement establishes rules for WTO members to formulate, adopt, and implement technical regulations, standards, and conformity assessment procedures in international trade. The purpose is to regulate the trade behavior and obligations of each member in terms of technical barriers, in order to reduce and eliminate technical barriers in trade, and achieve liberalization and facilitation of international trade.
According to the relevant agreements of the WTO, when formulating or revising current technical regulations, mandatory standards, conformity assessment procedures and measures, if there is a lack of international standards or inconsistency with relevant international standards, and it may have a significant impact on the trade of other members, each member state must notify the WTO Secretariat 60 days before the approval of the regulations, give other member states a certain amount of time for evaluation, and consider their reasonable opinions as much as possible.
The TBT/SPS emergency measures notification work can be carried out simultaneously with the effective implementation of regulations, without leaving a period for soliciting opinions, but the legitimate reasons for taking emergency measures must be explained in the notification. This notification and consultation system not only communicates information, but also has a further significance, which is technical coordination. Notification is for the communication of technical information, while consultation is for the coordination of technical requirements.