RESTRICTEDWORLD  TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/TPR/S/71
5 June 2000
(00-2180)
Trade Policy Review Body
TRADE POLICY REVIEW
POLAND
Report by the Secretariat
This report, prepared for the second Trade Policy Review of Poland, has been
drawn up by the WTO Secretariat on its own responsibility.  The Secretariat has,
as required by the Agreement establishing the Trade Policy Review Mechanism
(Annex 3 of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade
Organization), sought clarification from  the Government of Poland on its trade
policies and practices.
Any technical questions arising from this report may be addressed to
Mr. W. Alfaro (tel. 739 53 72) or Mr. C. Boonekamp (tel. 739 52 26)
Document WT/TPR/G/71 contains the policy statement submitted by the
Government of Poland
Note: This report is subject to restricted circulation and press embargo until the end of the meeting
of the Trade Policy Review Body on Poland.Poland WT/TPR/S/71
Page iii
CONTENTS
Page
SUMMARY OBSERVATIONS VII
(1) R ECENT ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE AND OUTLOOK VII
(2) T RADE POLICY OBJECTIVES VIII
(3) T RADE AND RELATED POLICY MEASURES IX
(4) S ECTORAL DEVELOPMENTS XI
(5) T RADE POLICY AND FOREIGN TRADING PARTNERS XII
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 1
(1) B ACKGROUND 1
(2) R ECENT ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE 2
(i) Fiscal policies 4(ii) Exchange rate and monetary policies 5(iii) Inflation and interest rate developments 6(iv) Balance of payments 7
(3) P
OLAND 'S ECONOMIC REFORMS 8
(4) T RADE AND FOREIGN INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE 10
(i) Trade patterns 10(ii) Foreign direct and portfolio investment 14
(5) O
UTLOOK 16
II. TRADE POLICY REGIME:  FRAMEWORK AND OBJECTIVES 17
(1) O VERVIEW 17
(2) T HE INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK 17
(i) General framework 17(ii) Economic and trade policy formulation and implementation 19(iii) Main trade laws 20
(3) T
RADE AGREEMENTS AND ARRANGEMENTS 21
(i) Poland and the EU 21
(ii) Poland and the WTO 23(iii) Regional agreements 24(iv) Bilateral agreements 28(v) Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) 28
(4) F
OREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT POLICIES 28
(i) Domestic regime and incentives 28
(ii) International initiatives and agreements 33
III. TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 34
(1) I NTRODUCTION 34
(2) M EASURES DIRECTLY AFFECTING IMPORTS 35
(i) Registration, documentation and customs administration 35
(ii) Tariffs 36WT/TPR/S/71 Trade Policy Review
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(iii) Customs valuation and preshipment inspection 49
(iv) Trade prohibitions, sanctions and quantitative restrictions 50(v) Licensing arrangements 51(vi) Tariff quotas 51
(vii) State trading agenci es and countertrade 53
(viii) Anti-dumping and countervailing actions 54(ix) Safeguard actions 55(x) Standards and other technical requirements 56(xi) Government procurement 58
(xii) Local-content requirements 60
(xiii) Measures implemented in exporting countries 60(xiv) Other measures 60
(3) M
EASURES DIRECTLY AFFECTING EXPORTS 61
(i) Duties and taxes 61(ii) Export prohibitions, quotas and licensing 61
(iii) Export subsidies 61
(iv) Duty and tax concessions 62(v) Export insurance and guarantees 62(vi) Export promotion and finance 63(vii) Free-trade and export-processing zones 63(viii) Other measures 64
(4) I
NTERNAL MEASURES 64
(i) Adjustment and regional assistance 64(ii) State-owned enterprises and privatization 65(iii) Competition policy 65(iv) Production assistance, and tax and credit concessions 66
(v) Pricing and marketing arrangements 67
(vi) Protection of intellectual property 68
IV. TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR 73
(1) O
VERVIEW 73
(2) A GRICULTURAL AND OTHER PRIMARY PRODUCTS 73
(i) Policy and assistance trends 74
(ii) Sectoral policies and trade developments 79
(3) M INING AND QUARRYING 87
(i) Minerals 88(ii) Energy 89
(4) M
ANUFACTURING 91
(i) Policy trends 91
(ii) Sectoral policies and trade developments 93
(5) S ERVICES 106
(i) Commitments under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) 106(ii) Telecommunications, postal and audio-visual services 109(iii) Transport 111(iv) Financial services 114
(v) Tourism 116
BIBLIOGRAPHY 119
APPENDIX TABLES 123Poland WT/TPR/S/71
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CHARTS
Page
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT
I.1 Fiscal position, 1992-98 5
I.2 Intensity of Poland's intra-industry trade with selected regions, 1992 and 1998 14
III TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE
III.1 Tariff averages by HS agricultural products, 1999 39
III.2 Tariff averages by HS manufactured products, 1999 40III.3 Composition of Poland's tariff, 1999 41III.4 Frequency distribution of MFN tariff rates, 1999 43III.5 Tariff escalation by 2-digit ISIC industry, 1999 44
IV TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR
IV.1 Agricultural support, 1986-99 76
IV.2 Components of agricultural assistance, 1999 77IV.3 Agricultural support, by commodity, 1986-99 78IV.4 Levels of agricultural assistance relative to the EU, by commodity, 1998 79
IV.5 Foreign direct investment in manufacturing activities, 1998 92
IV.6 Composition of the manufacturing sector, 1998 93
TABLES
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT
I.1 Main economic and social indicators 2
I.2 Economic performance, 1995-99 3
I.3 Exports by destination, 1980-98 11
I.4 Imports by origin, 1980-98 11I.5 Exports by groups of products, 1980-98 12I.6 Imports by groups of products, 1980-98 13I.7 Foreign investment by source and activity, 1993-98 15
II. TRADE POLICY REGIME:  FRAMEWORK AND OBJECTIVES
II.1 Poland's main legislation related to trade, 1999 21
II.2 Poland's preferential trade agreements, 1999 25II.3 Sectors subject to foreign direct investment restrictions, 1999 30II.4 Reduced corporate income tax exemptions available to foreign investors, 1999 32
III TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE
III.1 Tariff indicators, 1999 37
III.2 Taxes levied on imported and domestic goods and services 45
III.3 Imported goods subject to different excise taxes 46
III.4 Poland's selected preferential tariff rates by ISIC 3-digit category, 1999 48III.5 Import prohibitions and restrictions, 1999 50III.6 Tariff quotas maintained on agricultural imports, 1999 52III.7 Tariff quotas on industrial products, 1999 53WT/TPR/S/71 Trade Policy Review
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Page
III.8 Anti-dumping action by Poland, 1999 54
III.9 Agricultural products subject to trigger levels and import monitoring for 
possible safeguard action, 1999 56
III.10 Membership of international agreements, conventions and
treaties on intellectual property protection, 1999 68
III.11 Summary of intellectual property protection in Poland, 1999 70
IV TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR
IV.1 Summary of main GATS commitments 107
IV.2 MFN exemptions on audio-visual services 108
APPENDIX TABLES
II. TRADE POLICY REGIME:  FRAMEWORK AND OBJECTIVES
AII.1 Selected Polish notifications to the WTO, February 2000 125
IV TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR
AIV.1 Tariff structure by 4-digit ISIC category, 1999 128
AIV.2 Summary of sector-specific commitments under GATS 132Poland WT/TPR/S/71
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SUMMARY OBSERVATIONS
1. The Republic of Poland continues to
successfully pursue its rapid transformation to
a market economy.  Led by major trade and
other comprehensive economic reforms, andbased on strong private sector development,
the Polish economy has performed robustly.
Impressive growth rates since the early 1990s
have raised real GDP to one quarter above
pre-transition levels.  GDP per capitaaveraged US$4,000 in 1999.  Social indicators
have also improved substantially.
Nevertheless, rural poverty and regional
development remain key problems.
2. Restoration of macroeconomic
balances and radical restructuring of the
economy have greatly contributed to Poland’s
economic prosperity.  The private sector now
accounts for some three quarters of output.
Foreign investment has accelerated and added
to growth.
(1) R
ECENT ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE
AND OUTLOOK
3. The Polish economy has shown
resilience to external factors.  Despite an
initial deep recession, the economy rebounded
quickly with faster growth from 1992.  Pre-transition real GDP was achieved by 1995,
and subsequently growth has averaged around
5% a year.  Slower growth of 4% in 1998-99,
due mainly to the Russian financial crisis and
the slowdown of the German economy,appears temporary, with prospects again
promising following successful stabilization
policies to control the contagion effects of
these external developments.  Growth is
expected to accelerate in 2000 and 2001 toaround 5% and 6%, respectively, based on
resumed double-digit export growth.
4. Prudent stabilization polices have
been an important part of Poland’s success.
However, the fiscal deficit, which had fallen to
1.3% of GDP in 1997, recently rose to 3-4% of
GDP. The budget deficit is projected to againfall in 2000, to about 2% of GDP.  Inflation,
although remaining relatively high, fell to 7%in 1999, but may rise in the short term, partly
due to excise and VAT increases.  High
interest rates were reduced from 24% in early
1998 to 13% in early 1999 as the economy
slowed.  They were again raised in September
1999 in response to a quickening of theeconomy and rising inflationary pressures.
5. The exchange rate was partially
liberalized in 1991 when the fixed rate was
replaced with a crawling-peg system, pegging
the rate to an Euro/U.S. dollar currencybasket.  From March 1999, the monthly rate of
crawl was slowed to 0.3% and the margins
widened to ± 15%.  Significant capital inflows
– encouraged by high domestic interest rates –
and relatively high Polish inflation rates led,until late 1999, to a substantial real
appreciation of the zloty, weakening external
competitiveness.
6. Poland's trade and current account
deficits have widened considerably,
approaching 9% of GDP in 1999.  Import
growth exceeded export growth during the1990s, and exports, hit hard by developments
in Russia, contracted by 11% in 1999.  Such
deficits reflect imbalances between domestic
savings and investment.  Poland has a healthy
capital account, buoyed by strong privateinvestment inflows.  These have effectively
financed Poland’s current account deficits
without raising public foreign indebtedness.
External reserves provide import cover of six
to eight months.  External debt, assisted byinternational debt restructuring deals, fell
from 37% of GDP in 1995 to 27% in 1999.
7. External trade is vital to the
transformation of the Polish economy.
Increased access to competitive importsfollowing trade liberalization has facilitated
export-led growth.   The share of  merchandise
trade (exports and imports) to GDP increased
from 38% in 1994 to 49% in 1997, before
falling to 44% in 1999.  The European Union
(EU) has replaced the former COMECON
area as Poland’s main trading partner,accounting for around two thirds of total
merchandise exports and imports.
Manufactured products account for over threeWT/TPR/S/71 Trade Policy Review
Page viii
quarters of Polish trade.  Export shares of
these goods increased from 59% in 1992 to
77% in 1998.  Within manufacturing, the
export share of iron and steel and chemicals
has fallen, while that of machinery, transport
equipment, and consumer goods has risensignificantly.
(2) T
RADE  POLICY   OBJECTIVES
8. The main objective of Poland's trade
policies is, overall, geared towards increased
liberalization.  Poland maintains a multi-stranded approach combining multilateral,
regional and bilateral initiatives.
9. Poland is a founding member of the
WTO and grants at least most-favoured-nation
(MFN) treatment to all WTO Members.  It isan observer to the plurilateral Agreement on
Government Procurement.  In the context of
the Uruguay Round, Poland bound its
agricultural tariff and almost all industrial
tariffs; tariffs on products covered by the
Information Technology Agreement (ITA) are
to be phased to zero by 2002.  Also, as part ofits Uruguay Round commitments, all non-tariff
measures, including variable levies, were
converted into tariffs albeit at high rates, and
minimum market access was provided by tariff
quotas on agricultural products, includingbeef, pork, poultry meat, milk, and certain fruit
and vegetables.  Poland extended its initial
GATS commitments on services through its
participation in the WTO Agreements on basic
telecommunication services and financialservices, although it is still to ratify the Fifth
Protocol.
10. Trade liberalization in Poland has
recently been largely concentrated at the
regional level.  Preferential tariff cuts withinregional trading arrangements have exceeded
multilateral reductions.  Preferential access
for EU products is provided under the Europe
Agreement, whereby tariffs were eliminated on
all industrial goods from 1999, except steel,
and petroleum products, abolished from 2000,
and automobiles, which are to be removedfrom 2002.  Special arrangements apply to
agricultural products.  Poland also has free-trade agreements with EFTA member States,
other CEFTA parties as well as bilaterally
with the Baltic States, Turkey, and Israel.
Preferential tariffs differ substantially between
trading partners, and in 1999 were, on
average, less than half of Poland’s MFNtariffs.
11. Following OECD membership in
1996, and the commencement of EU accession
talks in March 1998, Poland’s reforms are
being driven largely by the objective of joiningthe EU by 2003.  This goal is significantly
influencing Poland’s economic and trade-
related policies, which are now being
harmonized with those of the EU.  This
requires comprehensive changes toinstitutional arrangements as well as
enactment of new laws and regulations to
achieve coherence with the EU’s acquis
communautaire.
12. Poland is already well integrated
within Europe, especially the EU, and this
would clearly intensify following accession.EU talks are well advanced in many areas.
Poland adopted a revised National
Programme of Preparation for Membership in
the EU in May 1999, and screening of its
legislation for compatibility with EU law wascompleted by November 1999.  Negotiations,
however, are still pending in several important
areas, such as agriculture, environment, and
movement of people.
13. The impact on net trade creation of
Poland’s possible EU accession is not
completely clear.  While Polish MFN tariffs
would fall by almost two thirds (based on 1999
levels) following adoption of the EU’s
Common External Tariff, agriculturalassistance is likely to increase significantly.
Further, the widening sectoral disparities in
assistance between manufacturing and
agriculture might hamper the efficient
allocation of resources in Poland.
14. Further integration with the EU
should accelerate Poland’s economicdevelopment and provide renewed
opportunities and impetus for morePoland WT/TPR/S/71
Page ix
comprehensive trade, investment, and other
economic reforms.  The extension of regional
trade preferences on a non-discriminatory
basis and securing them in the multilateral
framework should maximize the benefits to
Poland from trade liberalization.
15. Poland’s GSP scheme exempts many
products, such as textiles, from preferential
treatment.  On average, preferential tariff
margins on imports from developing and least-
developed countries are limited;  generallythese countries receive less favourable access
than Poland’s regional trading partners.
(3) T
RADE AND RELATED POLICY
MEASURES
16. Poland's  MFN tariffs averaged 15.9%
(unweighted) in 1999, compared with 6% on
imports from the EU and other preferential
sources; 14.1% on imports from developing
countries; and 9.9% from least developed
country suppliers.  Much higher tariffs,
averaging 34.6%, apply to imports from non-
WTO countries.  The tariff surcharge,introduced on all imports for balance-of-
payments reasons in 1994, was progressively
lowered from 6% to 3% and abolished as from
1997.
17. Substantial tariff dispersion exists.
MFN rates range from zero to 293%, with a
standard deviation of 24 percentage points.
High tariff escalation exists on food,
beverages and tobacco; textile and leather;
and wood and wood products.  Tarifftransparency is improved by the high
incidence (over 90%) of ad valorem tariff
rates.  However, the existence of many
different MFN rates, often involving gradation
at the one-decimal-point level, as well asnumerous preferential rates, complicates and
reduces the transparency of the tariff
structure.
18. Almost 94% of Poland's tariff lines are
bound.  Poland adopted ceiling bindings for
many products, exceeding, on average, MFN
applied rates in 1999 by 25%, and by almost66% on agricultural products.  This gapprovides scope to raise duties in the future, but
affects the predictability of the tariff system.
Poland recently used this leeway to
substantially raise applied tariffs, to bound
levels, on a range of agricultural products,
such as wheat, butter, sugar, rapeseed, andpigmeat.
19. Customs clearance fees are generally
ad valorem, not linked to the services
provided.  Some fees were eliminated in
June 1999; the rest will be removed by 2001,except for those maintained by the EU.  VAT
and excise taxes levied on some imports
appear to be discriminatory with lower rates
levied on domestic products, such as clothing,
where local products are exempt from exciseduties while imports are taxed at 20%.
20. The new Customs Code of 1997 and
the Customs Services (Administration) Act of
1999 provide an important framework for
improving customs administration.  However,
customs clearances still frequently involve
long delays and there are suggestions ofinconsistent treatment.  A computerized system
is being introduced, and customs control is to
be based on risk analysis.
21. Most import bans and quotas, such as
on petroleum products, have been removed.Poland prohibits imports of used passenger
and commercial vehicles older than ten and
six years, respectively, for health and
environmental reasons.  These are to be
eliminated by 2002.  Import licensing alsoapplies to petroleum oils and gases; certain
vehicle engines and other components for
assembly; some food products; gelatine for
industrial use; alcoholic beverages; and
tobacco products.
22. Tariff quotas apply to a wide range of
imports.  "First come, first served" global
tariff quotas were implemented in July 1995
on many agricultural imports as part of
tariffication.  Many of these quotas have been
consistently and substantially underutilized.
Poland has also applied bilateral tariff quotason agricultural imports from regional trading
partners.  Tariff quotas, including on aWT/TPR/S/71 Trade Policy Review
Page x
bilateral basis, also apply to certain
manufactured goods.
23. Poland maintains mandatory health
and safety standards – the B certificate – on
many products to protect consumer interests.
Many Polish standards are not related tointernational norms.  Although the list of
products covered by mandatory B certification
was halved in 1997, the requirement still
applies to about one third of all goods
marketed in Poland.
24. Of 18,000 Polish standards in 1999,
some 75% complied with EU norms; 15% with
international norms not adopted by the EU;
and 10% were Polish-designed.  Poland aims
to have at least 80% of standards harmonizedwith EU norms by 2002, and to adopt EU
requirements where different from
international norms.
25. Poland maintains strict quarantine
and other SPS regulations affecting food
imports, such as live animals and related
products, vegetables, and fruit.  Poland hassigned several bilateral agreements
concerning SPS matters since 1992.  New
regulations, including labelling requirements
apply to  imports of genetically modified food
since November 1999.
26. Poland has taken import contingency
measures, including anti-dumping duties,
import quotas and licensing requirements, on
a range of products, such as steel, footwear,
and chemicals.  Although Poland's use ofgeneral safeguard measures has been limited,
it has frequently invoked specific safeguard
action, mainly on agricultural  imports, under
its WTO and  bilateral agreements.
27. Various adjustment and regional
assistance schemes provide financial
assistance, such as grants, loans, tax
concessions, and loan guarantees, to promote
industry restructuring.  Such arrangements
have been applied in  iron and steel,
chemicals, transport, machinery, food
processing, energy, construction, andpharmaceuticals.  National price preferencesof 20% apply to government procurement
contracts for goods and services, including
construction.  Domestic suppliers must source
at least 50% of raw materials or construction
costs locally.
28. Poland maintains, at least
intermittently, export quotas and bans, on a
number of products, such as animal skins and
hides as well as non-ferrous scrap, aimed at
protecting domestic supplies.  These assist
downstream processors, such as footwearmanufacturers, by lowering input prices below
world levels.  Poland also monitors certain
steel exports to the EU to counteract,
according to authorities, the threat of anti-
dumping proceedings.  Several Polishexporters are also party to price and volume
undertakings on exports to the EU.
29. Export subsidies apply, including on
sugar, potato starch and, in 1999, on pig
carcasses.  Subsidies totalled US$13.9 million
in 1998.  Poland’s WTO agricultural
commitments permit it to extend exportsubsidies to additional products, such as
animal products, meat, fruit, vegetables,
rapeseed, and rapeseed oil.
30. Export insurance and guarantees are
provided by the government-owned ExportCredit Insurance Corporation.  Export
promotion and finance, including loans and
loan guarantees, are also available.  Poland
has 17 special economic zones and eight
foreign trade zones that provide incentives.The new Customs Code provides for duty
drawback or suspension on imported inputs
processed for export.  Exporters also benefit
from investment-related tax rebates that
preferentially tax export income.
31. EU norms have been used to model
Poland’s competition policies.  Existing
legislation prohibits monopolistic practices,
including abuse of dominant market position,
defined as market share exceeding 40%.
Mergers are prohibited if they create or
strengthen a firm’s dominant market position.Poland’s competition law does not yet contain
corresponding EU regulations on state aid,Poland WT/TPR/S/71
Page xi
and comprehensive information is unavailable.
New legislation aimed at full conformity with
EU requirements on competition and
consumer protection is due to be introduced in
2000.
32. Poland was committed to introduce
the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement by
2000, and under the Europe Agreement, to
providing intellectual protection and
enforcement similar to the EU.  According to
the authorities, Poland has had patent, trademark and copyright legislation broadly
consistent with international standards for
some time, and has strengthened such
protection by introducing new legislation,
such as on copyright in 1999.  A newindustrial property law is also envisaged.
33. More effective enforcement of
intellectual property rights remains a major
challenge. The incidence of imported pirated
and counterfeit products in Poland appears to
be substantial.  Strengthened legislative
provisions over customs seizure of such goodsis being introduced.  Since 1999, Polish
customs have been able to seize suspected
goods without first requiring an application
from the right holder.  Parallel imports are not
permitted.
(4) S
ECTORAL DEVELOPMENTS
34. Agricultural assistance continues to
be a high policy priority in Poland.
Agricultural support almost doubled (on a
PSE basis) from 12% in 1991-93 to 23% in1997-99.  The PSE further increased in 1999
to 25%, compared to pre-transformation levels
in 1986-88 of 29%.  This has assisted farmers,
mainly at the expense of consumers, and has
probably affected economic efficiency.  Foodprices, on average, were 27% above world
levels in 1999.  Income transfers from Polish
consumers in 1999 amounted to Zl 10.6 billion
and from taxpayers Zl 3.9 billion.  Total
transfers to farmers represented 2.4% of GDP.
35. Farm assistance is delivered by tariffs,
price support, supply control measures, creditand input subsidies as well as direct outlays,including export subsidies and deficiency
payments recently introduced on wheat.  The
main products assisted include cereals,
especially wheat and rye, pigmeat, eggs,
sugar, poultry, and oilseeds.  The Agricultural
Market Agency intervenes to provide marketprice support to selected commodities.
36. Poland has sectoral policies for
certain manufactured products, such as
transport equipment.  Relatively high tariff
assistance, including duty-free importation ofcomponent kits, was used to encourage motor
vehicle assembly, and licensing arrangements
were introduced in 1996 to encourage vehicle
production.
37. Industry restructuring in Poland is
continuing, facilitated by reduced
manufacturing assistance and trade
liberalization, especially allowing competition
from EU exporters.  Remarkable progress has
been achieved in privatization of state-owned
enterprises and in attracting foreign
investment.  Nevertheless, state-ownedenterprises remain significant in some key
sectors, such as hard-coal mining, steel,
chemicals, shipbuilding, electricity generation,
sugar, liquor, railway transport, and defence
industries.  The Government has acceleratedprivatization efforts since 1998, aimed at
divesting 70% of remaining State assets by
2001.  Priority areas for privatization include
financial and telecommunication services, and
key utilities, such as electricity.
38. The efficient provision of business
services, including finance and
telecommunications, are essential for private
sector development.  Poland is taking
substantive steps to privatize the provision ofsuch services and to de-regulate such markets.
The (de facto) state monopoly on long-
distance and local telephone calls was
terminated from 1999, and for domestic telex
and telegraphic services from 2000.  The
statutory monopoly on international calls and
mobile satellite services is to end from 2003.The digital phone market is already open.
Privatization of the national state-owned
carrier, TPSA, began in 1998, and is intendedWT/TPR/S/71 Trade Policy Review
Page xii
to increase.  New legislation and a regulatory
regime are being established to control anti-
competitive practices and to ensure
interconnection for new licensed entrants and
the provision of universal service.
39. Bank privatization has accelerated
since 1997, aided by substantial foreign
participation.  Entry restrictions on foreign
banks and insurance companies, including
operation of branches, have been removed,
subject to enhanced prudential requirements.No limits exist on the number of foreign
licences issued.
(5) T
RADE POLICY AND FOREIGN
TRADING PARTNERS
40. Poland is an active participant in the
WTO, of which it is a founding Member.
Poland extends at least MFN treatment to all
Members and almost all of its tariff is bound.
Trade policy is grounded in WTO
commitments and trade liberalization, in
support of ongoing economic reform, is an
important objective.
41. Accession to the EU remains in the
forefront of Poland's economic and politicalgoals.  Indeed, much of the ongoing reform
process is being driven by this objective.
Under EU accession, Poland's industrial
tariffs would decline substantially but
agricultural assistance is likely to increase,
perhaps raising questions about net tradecreation.
42. Poland has a large and expanding
network of preferential trade agreements, with
the average tariff under such agreements
considerably less than Poland's averageapplied MFN rate. Concerns that partners
might have about this disparity – and its
possible effects on domestic resource
allocation – could be allayed by a certain
multilateralization of preferences.
43. Vigorous pursuit of multilateral trade
liberalization would benefit Poland’s long-
term economic interests.  Poland’s trading
partners could also facilitate its successful
transition by ensuring non-discriminatory
access to their markets.