The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international agency which promotes trade between member nations, administers global trade agreements and resolves disputes when they arise. It deals with the rules of trade between nations. It is located in Geneva, Switzerland and currently has 148 member nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations. While the WTO aims to liberalize trade and remove trade barriers, in some circumstances its rules support maintaining trade barriers — for example to protect consumers or prevent the spread of disease.
