U.S. President Donald Trump, a frequent critic of the World Trade Organization, has taken another shot at it, complaining that rules allowing countries to designate themselves as developing economies eligible for special consideration in trade talks and in other matters at the WTO give some, like China, an unfair economic advantage. The criticism was included in a White House memo issued July 26, in which Trump also directed the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to "secure changes at the WTO" that would prevent countries from claiming developing status not justified by "appropriate economic and other indicators." It is unclear what way the United States has to change the WTO rules, given that Washington does not directly grant significant trade benefits to the countries that get special and differential treatment, giving it little leverage against them....
