A group of more than 70 nations led by Australia, Japan and Singapore will on Friday announce plans to restart stalled World Trade Organisation talks to create a set of rules governing e-commerce and cross-border data flows, which have not been updated since the internet was in its infancy.
The move reflects growing worries of a “splinternet” in which internet commerce and the flow of online information become fragmented globally. There is concern that increased trade frictions between the US and China, as well as fundamental differences between China and the west over the accessibility of data on the internet, could lead to a fracturing of digital trade.
As of Thursday, China had not signed up to a joint statement, to be announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.