WTO says global trade will pick up in 2010

GENEVA, Switzerland, March 26 (UPI) -- World Trade Organization economists in Switzerland estimated global trade would grow 9.5 percent in 2010, coming off the worst decline in decades.

With a nearly global recession receding, economists "see the light at the end of the tunnel," said WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy.

"But we must avoid derailing economic revival through protectionism," Lamy said.

In a report issued Friday, the WTO said trade among developed countries would expand by 7.5 percent in 2010, while trade among developing countries is expected to grow 11 percent.

The estimates say expanded growth will not erase all of the losses from 2009, when global trade declined by 12.2 percent by volume, the largest contraction since World War II.

The report says WTO members resisted adding any "major" trade barriers in 2009. "The number of trade-restricting measures applied by governments has actually declined in recent months. However ... persistent unemployment may intensify protectionist pressures," the WTO said.