By BERNIE CAHILES-MAGKILAT Trade in medical products which have now been described as critical and in severe shortage during the COVID-19 crisis totaled about $597 billion in 2019 at average tariff of 4.8 percent and China as the largest producer of personal protective products, according to a WTO study. The WTO study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of trade and tariffs imposed on medical goods in general, many of which appear to be in severe shortage as a result of the current crisis. These COVID-19 relevant medical products are categorized into four main groups: medicines, medical supplies; medical equipment and technology; and personal protective products. These medical products include: computer tomography apparatus; disinfectants/ sterilization prod-ucts; face masks; gloves; hand soap and sanitizer; patient monitors and pulse oximeters; protective spectacles and visors; sterilizers; syringes; thermometers; ultrasonic scanning apparatus; ventilators, oxygen mask; X-ray equipment; other medical devices. They are frequently mentioned by countries, international organizations and in news reports as the goods in short supply. Trade in these products collectively amounts to 1.7 percent of world merchandise trade. Medical products account for approximately 5% of total world trade (imports and exports), more than half of imports are medicines. The study showed that commitments made under various WTO negotiations and agreements have helped slash import tariffs on these products and improve market access, the average tariff on COVID- 19 medical products standing at 4.8 percent, lower than the 7.6 percent average tariff for non-agricultural products in general. The statistics show that 52 per¬cent of 134 WTO members impose a tariff of 5 percent or lower on medical products. Among them, four members do not levy any tariffs at all: Hong Kong, China; Iceland; Macao, China; and Singapore. The report, however, also identifies markets where tariffs remain high. Tariffs on face masks, for example, can be as high as 55 percent in some countries. Tariffs on some products remain very high. For example, the average applied tariff for hand soap is 17 percent and some WTO members apply tariffs as high as 65 percent. Protective supplies used in the fight against COVID-19 attract an average tariff of 11.5 percent and go as high as 27 percent in some countries. According to the report, the ten largest supplying economies ac¬counted for almost three-quarters of total world exports of the products while the ten largest buyers accounted for roughly two-thirds of world imports. Imports and exports of medical products totaled about $2 trillion, including intra-EU trade, which represented approximately 5 percent of total world merchandise trade in 2019. Trade of products described as critical and in severe shortage in the COVID-19 crisis totaled about $597 billion, or 1.7 percent of total world trade in 2019; 40% of personal protective products exports come from China, Germany, and the US.