CHAPTER 3 POLICY AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK The automobile industry is governed by a set of regulations based on both domestic legislation and on international treaties/conventions to which Pakistanis a treaty partner or has agreed to adhere to the conventions. The international commitments supersede the local legislation wherever there is a conflict. They include the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs). GATT was signed in 1947 and lasted until 1993, when it was replaced by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1995. The original GATT text (GATT 1947) is still in effect under the WTO framework, subject to the modifications of GATT 1994. GATT’s purpose was to promote a substantial reduction of tariffs and other trade barriers and the elimination of preferences, on a reciprocal and mutually advantageous basis. 3.1. TRIMS TRIMs came into force in 1995, as part of the Uruguay Round negotiations with the same objectives, in effect carrying on where GATT left. The TRIMs Agreement did not define prohibited TRIMs, but its illustrative list included the following 8 components (see Box 3.1):
