Global Tech & Trade Policy Update

After a whirlwind few weeks, culminating in the WTO MC14 Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, Sabina is enjoying some well-earned rest. She will be back soon but, in the meantime, my name is Archie Breare and I will be covering this month’s Global Tech and Trade Policy Update as the newest member of the techUK International Policy and Trade Team! Please feel free to get in touch with myself at [email protected] to say hello.

WTO MC14 in Yaoundé

The main news recently has been the WTO MC14 Ministerial Conference, which took place in Yaoundé, Cameroon from 26-30 March 2026.

The major disappointment from the Conference was that no agreement was reached on extending the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions following a dispute between the United States and Brazil, with the moratorium expiring on 30 March as a result. The moratorium was a key foundation of the global digital trading economy by providing certainty that duties would not be levied on digital transmissions. The moratorium has broad support across the WTO but appears to have become a bit of a negotiating chip in recent years given its importance.

On the bright side, sixty-six members of the WTO, which account for a majority of global trade, announced they had adopted a pathway to implement the WTO Agreement on E-Commerce through interim arrangements while they work on getting the agreement into the WTO’s rulebook. The Agreement aims to help facilitate cross-border digital trade through improved transparency and predictability, as well as to help developing countries engage in digital trade and reduce barriers to further digital trade in general. The Agreement also includes clauses prohibiting duties on electronic transmissions.

While the Agreement is not a full replacement for the loss of the WTO moratorium, which indicates that there is persistent division amongst WTO nations that threaten the global trading system and which creates a great deal of uncertainty for the future of digital trade, progress on the Agreement does at least show that smaller groups of WTO members can continue to make agreements based on areas of shared interest. It can also provide some certainty to businesses that customs on electronic transmissions will not be levied between parties to the Agreement.

Negotiations on the Moratorium have since left Yaoundé and will continue in Geneva sometime in May. However, the fact a deal could not be done in Cameroon suggests Peter Kyle is right to claim this is a “major setback for global trade” as the digital trade business environment has become a great deal more unstable now the moratorium has lapsed.

Meanwhile, talks between the EU and the CPTPP in the wings of the Conference have produced a shared intent to begin talks on a digital trade agreement. techUK has called for more such digital trade agreements to be signed, and an EU-CPTPP agreement would represent a third of global trade and would bolster the case for digital trade reform at the WTO.

While the international trading system has therefore taken a blow, those who would seek to protect it are not standing idle.

EU and Australia Partner Up

While the EU’s Trade Agreement with Mercosur heads toward provisional implementation on 1 May, the EU and Australia recently announced a Security and Defence Partnership alongside a free trade deal.

Press about the agreements has largely focused on agriculture and manufacturing, but there is a decent chunk in both agreements for tech trade.

The Security and Defence Partnership includes measures on cyber security, preventing new forms of hybrid warfare, coordination on emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and included measures on improving space security co-operation. The trade agreement meanwhile promoted co-operation in the field of critical minerals including aluminium, lithium, and manganese.

The linking of the defence and technology trade, identified in our last newsletter, is once more on display in this agreement as both the EU and Australia seek bolstered security and resilience through diversifying their tech sector ties with like-minded partners.

Britain bolsters ties with the EU

The EU and Australia are not the only ones diversifying and deepening ties. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced in a speech on the First of April that he is seeking ‘ambitious’ new UK-EU ties to bolster both security and trade as a result of the Iran War.

The Prime Minister’s plan is to use a summit with EU leaders to discuss several areas that will be announced publicly, according to Politico’s Morning Trade UK, in late April. These areas will be announced before the expected trailing of the Government's EU Alignment Bill in the King’s Speech in early May, which is expected to give Ministers powers to align with the EU in any areas they choose. Combined, Starmer’s speech and new Ministerial powers suggest a push for closer EU alignment in the future is very likely, though whether this happens may not be as easy as Starmer wishes.

However, the UK is continuing that theme of diversifying to build resilience and security. For instance, the UK-US Pharma Deal represents a deepening relationship between the UK and US pharmaceuticals and medtech industries, giving the UK tariff-free access for its pharmaceutical and medtech products to the US in exchange for the NHS paying for more expensive medicines it otherwise would not purchase.

The UK receives a visit from Mexico

The Trade Minister for Mexico announced they were keen to restart trade talks between Mexico and the UK in H2 of 2026. After WTO MC14, the Minister spent two days in London negotiating with the UK Government on when trade talks could begin, ‘talks about talks’, which will look particularly at how to further support increasing services trade between the UK and North America’s second most-populous country.

techUK will be keeping an eye on developments and pushing for any UK-Mexico deal to include a digital trade agreement element.

techUK International Policy and Trade Programme activities

techUK supports members with their international trade plans and aspirations. We help members to understand market opportunities, tackle market access barriers, and build partnerships in their target market. Visit the programme page here.