The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), signed in 1947 and effective in 1948, was created to boost post-WWII economic recovery by reducing tariffs, quotas, and trade barriers. It operated through multilateral negotiation rounds, fostering significant growth in global commerce. On January 1, 1995, GATT was replaced by the World Trade Organization (WTO), which provided a more permanent, legal framework for trade in goods, services, and intellectual property.
