7. Digital Trade

Given the dominance of its Internet firms, the United States has major political and economic motives to push for the absence of restrictions in digital trade. After trying to secure a framework for the regulation of electronic commerce at the World Trade Organization (WTO), by the turn of the century the US government turned to preferential trade agreements (PTAs). In view of its weight vis-à-vis particular trade partners, the United States has been able over successive negotiations to furthering e-commerce rules and standards. The United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement is the PTA that goes furthest in regulating digital trade, notably with provisions to ensure that personal data and information may be transferred across borders and that limits on data storage and processing are kept to a minimum. Since 2017, plurilateral discussions on electronic commerce have been revived within the WTO, the US favored venue. Yet, as divergences on this subject remain among WTO members, the PTA path is still the one most likely to enable the United States to achieve its objectives as regards trade in digital products.