PARIS - The supply of services through commercial presence and digital trade faced new barriers in 2023, as global services providers confronted fragmented regulatory environments. The overall number of services trade liberalisation reforms enacted in 2023 was below the previous year, but the aggregate impact of liberalising policies nonetheless moderately outweighed the introduction of new restrictions.

This report highlights key policy developments up to 2024 and the latest trends affecting services trade and digital trade. It also indicates best practices and the countries that lead in services reforms.

The OECD Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) provides annually updated, comparable information on regulations affecting trade in services across 50 countries and 22 sectors from 2014 to 2024.

The OECD’s quantification of services regimes across countries and over time seeks to inform the decisions of policy makers and regulators, to convey transparent and accessible information to exporters, and to provide a source of data for academic research on drivers and impediments to services trade.

To download the report, visit: https://read.oecd-ilibrary.org/trade/oecd-services-trade-restrictiveness-index_b9e5c870-en#page2