Posted on June, 13, 2023 at 06:09 am
THE World Trade Organization (WTO) has launched a new Global Trade Data Portal that provides access to real-time data on maritime trade, allowing users to monitor supply chain activities and acquire advance warning on potential disruptions and risks.
The portal was launched on May 31, 2023 with the release of new dashboards on seaborne trade in wheat and other grains and oil seeds aimed at improving market transparency at a time of food insecurity, WTO said.
With supply chain disruptions expected to become more frequent, the Global Trade Data Portal can help users access real-time data to respond to these disruptions more quickly, monitor trade flows more closely, and understand better the functioning of complex value chains.
The portal can be accessed at https://globaltradedata.wto.org/.
“Data are the foundation of informed decision making,” said WTO director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in welcoming the launch of the portal. “We need timely data to support timely policy action and rulemaking.”
In addition to providing real-time insights based on cargo-tracking data, the Global Trade Data Portal also offers visualization tools based on WTO trade statistics and tariff data as well as a list of freely accessible sources for trade-related statistics and data from other organizations.
One of the dashboards was developed by the WTO with the International Grain Council and is mainly focused on wheat. The dashboard provides comprehensive bi-weekly updates on international seaborne trade in wheat, which constitutes more than 80 percent of total traded volumes.
The other dashboard is an interactive grain and oilseeds dashboard updated every three hours that displays short-term trade trends in a variety of crops such as wheat, corn, barley and soybeans.
“The paradigm of grains trade has switched abruptly from ‘just in time’ to ‘just in case,’” noted Arnaud Petit, executive director of the International Grains Council.
“These new trade practices mean logistics and infrastructure are more important than ever. Having real-time shipments information from 900 ports across 109 economies will provide a unique tool to assess and respond quickly to a fast-changing environment.”
The dashboards complement other tools developed by other international organizations such as the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Bank and the UN World Food Programme as well as the Agricultural Market Information System and the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program platforms to improve transparency in response to food security challenges.
The WTO said further dashboards will be developed in the coming months to allow users to monitor in real time how trade is evolving and better address the challenges facing global trade today.
Source: Sunstar