Issues on trade in services:

The structure  of  the developed economies has been changing  significantly over the past  few decades. The manufacturing sector has been  shrinking and  the services sector has been growing  in importance. The expansion of the services sector is partly because of the development of new services but also because more services are incorporated into goods sold, as it makes them more suited to individual consumers and it makes their consumption more convenient. For instance, development of Automated Teller Machines  (ATMs) and  internet banking has made banking more convenient. The importance of the services sector has also grown  in developing countries though  at  a  slower pace.

Furthermore,  at the same time, the importance of  the manufacturing sector has been growing in many developing countries. The  change  in  the  production  structure is  reflected  in  trade  patterns. Developing  countries  have increased  their  share  of  exports of goods, particularly manufactured goods. But developed countries  have increased  their share of exports of services, particularly  commercial services. The share of all developing regions, except Asia  in exports  of  commercial services  has declined over the past decade. Developed countries,  particularly  the US, were therefore keen  to bring  trade  in  services within the ambit of the international trading system. But negotiations on services have been more difficult and have had a more  profound effect on the nature of economic negotiations  than negotiations on trade in goods.