The World Trade Organisation (WTO) says trade in medical equipment which has now been described as critical and in severe shortage during the Covid-19 crisis totalled about $597 billion in 2019, accounting for 1.7 per cent of total world merchandise trade.

The 10 largest supplying economies accounted for almost three-quarters of total world exports of the products while the 10 largest buyers accounted for roughly two-thirds of world imports, according to the report released on Friday.

Commitments made under various WTO agreements have helped slash import tariffs on these products and improve market access, with the average tariff on Covid-19 medical products standing at 4.8 per cent, lower than the 7.6pc average tariff for non-agricultural products in general.