UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal Participates in Opening Day of G20 Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Milwauke, U.S

Q1. With reference to the 'peace clause' on public stockholding for food security purposes at the WTO, as clarified by the General Council in November 2014, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. It shields only developing members' public stockholding programmes for traditional staple food crops from challenge under WTO dispute settlement.
  2. It removes the value of such stockholding purchases from the calculation of the member's trade-distorting domestic support.
  3. It covers any public stockholding programme that a developing member starts before a permanent solution is adopted.
  4. Its protection depends on the programme meeting transparency and anti-circumvention conditions.
  • A. 1, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 4 only

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Under WTO rules, a developing country's public stockholding programme can count as trade-distorting domestic support even if the stocks are distributed only to its own poor households.
  2. Under WTO rules, buying stocks from farmers at prices fixed by the government is treated as price support, whereas buying them at market prices is not.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. With reference to the classification of domestic support under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. The de minimis level of Amber Box support that escapes limits is set higher for most developing countries than for developed countries.
  2. Green Box support may include market price support, provided it is financed from the government budget.
  3. Developing countries may give input subsidies generally available to low-income or resource-poor producers without counting them against their limits.
  4. Blue Box payments are capped by a spending ceiling, just as Amber Box support is.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 3 and 4 only
  • D. 2 and 4 only

Q4. Under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, which one of the following forms of farm support would be classified as Amber Box support subject to limits?

  • A. Government-funded regional development programmes for backward farming districts
  • B. Government-funded environmental protection programmes on agricultural land
  • C. Direct income payments to farmers not linked to current production or prices
  • D. A guaranteed minimum price at which the government buys a crop from its growers

Q5. Consider the following assertion: 'Greater transparency in international food markets can reduce the risk of panic-driven export bans during price spikes.' Which of the statements given below support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Timely and accurate information on supplies and stocks helps dampen food price volatility.
  2. AMIS monitors four crops: wheat, maize, rice and soybeans.
  3. A forum where major producers and consumers discuss market conditions during a crisis encourages policy coordination instead of unilateral action.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q6. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. At the 2015 Nairobi Ministerial Conference, WTO members decided to abolish agricultural export subsidies, a step that advances SDG target 2.b on correcting distortions in world agricultural markets.
  2. Agricultural export subsidies are classified in the Green Box of the Agreement on Agriculture because they do not affect domestic production levels.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q7. Suppose a major grain exporter imposes a temporary export ban during a global price spike. Under the Ministerial Decision adopted at the WTO's 12th Ministerial Conference (2022), which one of the following purchases is shielded from such a ban?

  • A. Grain bought by importing governments for their own public stocks
  • B. Fertiliser bought by least-developed countries for their own farmers
  • C. Food bought for humanitarian purposes by the World Food Programme
  • D. Commercial food purchases by net food-importing developing countries

Q8. With reference to the 2015 WTO Nairobi decision on agricultural export subsidies, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Developed members were required to eliminate export subsidies sooner than developing members, subject to a few product exceptions.
  2. Developing members kept, only for a limited period, the flexibility to subsidise the marketing and transport costs of farm exports.
  3. Least-developed and net food-importing developing countries were given more time than other developing members to cut such subsidies.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only