We see today a shift in the terrain of trade agreements from the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and the binding trade rules that it imposes on member countries, to bilateral and regional trade agreements. From 1990 to 2007, the number of such agreements notified to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) or the WTO increased from 20 to 159. At present, it is estimated that over 250 regional and bilateral trade agreements govern more than 30% of world trade.