ICC News

Speaking on behalf the world’s largest business organisation—representing over 45 million companies employing more than 1 billion workers—ICC Director of Global Policy Nikolaus Schultze talked trade wars with France 24’s Annette Young. In a live interview with television network France 24, Mr Schultze argued that debates over trade need to move beyond tariff threats and towards reforming the international rules-based trading system for the 21st century. Mr Schultze said: “We need to move the debate out of the schoolyard. The multilateral rules-based system has served the world very well. We’ve had 70 years of job creation and poverty alleviation so it

As part of the United Nations (UN) High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in New York, the SDG Business Forum gathered governments and business leaders to take stock on progress made so far on the SDGs. Business leaders and government representatives gathered at the UN Headquarters on 17 July to highlight partnerships that can help speed up the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Just over 1000 days after the Goals were agreed upon, the SDG Business Forum opened with a call on all participants to think critically about the progress made so far, considering the long way ahead. View

On the 4th of July 2018, the ICC Albania General Assembly met to elect the business leaders and new Chairperson who will lead the organization for the upcoming term 2018-2021. Mr. Ilir Daci, Founder and Managing Partner at Optima Legal & Financial elected as the Chairman of ICC Albania, the representative office of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Albania. Following his election as Chairman, Mr. Daci said: ”I am pleased to have been entrusted by the members of ICC Albania with the duty to lead the organization for the next three years. Trusting in the power of the International Chamber

In an interview broadcast live on the American news network MSNBC, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO stressed that tit-for-tat tariffs were not the answer to legitimate grievances of marginalized groups who may have been negatively affected by globalization. As China and the United States challenge each other before the World Trade Organization, in an escalating trade war, Mr Denton’s message to MSNBC anchor and business correspondent Ali Velshi was clear: The global trading system does need reform but international trade has fueled growth and development around the world and it is principally the task of

The International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) supreme governing body, the World Council, has re-appointed Alexis Mourre as President of the International Court of Arbitration for a second three-year term to commence 1 July 2018. For the Court’s 2018-2021 term, the Council also appointed 176 members from 104 countries, representing gender parity of 88 women and 88 men. Consistent with the current term, the new composition of the Bureau of the Court will comprise 17 Vice-Presidents. This includes nine women and the following six new members: Chiann Bao (United States) Eduardo Damião Gonçalves (Brazi) Ndanga Kamau (Kenya) Claudia Salomon (United States) Deva Villanúa (Spain) Todd Wetmore (Canada/France) Reflecting

In response to the European Commission’s proposed provisions for cross-border data flows in trade and investment agreements, ICC calls on EU member states to prevent digital protectionism. In a letter to Emil Karanikolov, Minister of Economy of Bulgaria—the nation currently presiding the Council of the European Union (EU)— ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO urged EU member states to strengthen language in the proposal that could otherwise allow countries to introduce damaging protectionist measures under the guise of protecting personal data and privacy. “A failure to obtain effective trade commitments against unjustified data localisation measures and for legitimate flows of

Arbitration users have once again recognised the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce as their most preferred arbitral institution worldwide, according to a major 2018 International Arbitration Survey. Conducted by the School of International Arbitration, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) in partnership with White & Case, the survey results highlight that “ICC stands out as the most preferred institution by a significant margin (77%)” – pointing to ICC’s reputation, recognition and global presence as well as its international experience ability to take into account users’ specific needs and preferences, as significant appealing factors for users. The

This Monday, on the 14th of May,  ICC Albania with the support of the Embassy of the Netherlands in Albania organized the Corporate Integrity Forum. This forum brought together local and international leaders from business, government and civil society. It offered a platform to discuss multi-stakeholder collaboration as a model to create more impact on responsible business conduct. The Corporate Integrity Forum also launched a new initiative from ICC Albania and supported by the embassy ‘The Anti-Corruption Business Coalition.’ The coalition aims to increase dialogue between the private sector, government and civil society and advocates to translate integrity policies into concrete

World Intellectual Property (IP) Day takes place on 26 April, highlighting the essential role IP rights play in encouraging innovation and creativity. This year, World IP Day will celebrate the leading role women are playing in driving change in the world. To mark the occasion, we put five questions to Ingrid Baele, the newly-appointed Chair of the ICC Commission on Intellectual Property. Ms Baele is Vice-President of Philips Intellectual Property and Standards (IP&S)—the organisation handling all Royal Philips’ IP matters—and has a great deal of international experience in IP management and strategy. You are the first female Chair of the IP Commission.

Common-sense reforms that make trading easier and faster can have a greater impact than removing every tariff in the world. Global business representatives at an ICC summit in Buenos Aires ahead of the G20 meeting agreed on the importance of furthering trade facilitation. The G20 meeting in Argentina approaches this year at a time of historic uncertainty around global trade and the future of the multilateral trading system. Fears surrounding this uncertainty are particularly acute for the global business community, as many companies depend on global value chains vulnerable to new trade barriers. What was clear at ICC’s Regional Forum on