Marketing Agreement

Orderly Marketing Agreement (OMA) and the GATT Policy Negotiations

In relation to the GATT Policy Negotiations, Christopher Mark (1993) provided the following explanation and/or definition of Orderly Marketing Agreement (OMA): A contractual agreement between two or more governments to restrain the export growth of specific products. OMAs are supposed to ensure that export surges do not disrupt, threaten, or impair sensitive sectors in the importing country or countries. OMAs usually entail establishment of an export licensing system and export or import quotas for the goods in question. The economic effect of an OMA is similar to that of a quota –with the important difference that real income is also transferred from consumers in the importing country to established producers in the exporting country. See also Voluntary Restraint Agreements.