WTO says G20 trade restrictions soar, cover $481 billion of trade

GENEVA (Reuters) - Countries belonging to the G20 group of the world biggest economies applied 40 new trade restrictive measures between May and October, covering around $481 billion (373.64 billion pounds) of trade, the World Trade Organization said on Thursday.

The new restrictions covered six times more trade than in the previous period and were the largest since the WTO started monitoring G20 trade in 2012, it said in a statement.

“Further escalation remains a real threat," WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said in the statement.

(Reporting by Tom Miles; editing by Stephanie Nebehay)