There is a new global trade agreement that will make IT products cheaper. More than 50 countries agreed to end tariffs and import duties on over 200 IT products. All 28 countries from the European Union signed, as well as China, Japan, South Korea, the U.S. and others. The deal was signed at a World Trade Organization meeting in Geneva. It will affect a wide variety of products, including smartphones, digital cameras, ink cartridges, video game consoles and even telecommunications satellites. Import duties will be completely removed from the selected IT products in the next four years. The deal applies to $1.3 trillion worth of global trade. This is about 7 per cent of all world trade.

Many people believe the deal will be good for the world. The EU Trade Commissioner, Cecilia Malmström, said: "This is a great deal for consumers, and for companies big and small. We've worked hard [on] this compromise between different countries to find the best solutions." She added: "This deal will cut costs for consumers and business - in particular, for smaller firms, which have been hit especially hard…in the past." Ms Malmström hopes more countries will sign up to the deal in the next few years. She said: "It clearly shows that countries around the world can work together to achieve solutions that benefit everyone. I [expect to see] other countries joining soon."

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.Over 50 countries signed up to a new deal on IT products.T / F

b.Only half of countries in Europe signed up.T / F

c.The countries who signed will remove import duties within four years.T / F

d.The new deal represents about 7% of all world trade.T / F

e.The EU Trade Commissioner said the deal was bad for smaller firms.T / F

f.The commissioner said countries worked hard on compromises.T / F

g.The commissioner does not want more countries to sign the deal.T / F

h.The commissioner said the solutions will not benefit everyone.T / F

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1.How many countries signed up to the new deal?

2.In which city was the deal signed?

3.What kind of cartridges are included in the deal?

4.When will all the import duties be removed?

5.What percentage of world trade does this deal represent?

6.Who is Cecilia Malmström?

7.What did countries work hard on to find?

8.Who in particular will the deal cut costs for?

9.When have smaller firms been hit especially hard?

10.Who does the article say benefits from the solutions?

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE (p.4)

aTbFcTdTeFfTgFhF

SYNONYM MATCH (p.4)

1.agreementa.deal

2dutiesb.taxes

3.varietyc.range

4.completelyd.totally

5.appliese.relates

6.believef.think

7.solutionsg.answers

8.especiallyh.particularly

9.achievei.reach

10.joiningj.signing up

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS (p.8)

1.More than 50

2.Geneva

3.Ink

4.Within 4 years

5.7%

6.The EU Trade Commissioner

7.The best solutions

8.Smaller firms

9.In the past

10.Everyone