Ministers split over Doha deal

Dec. 1: Globalisation could only retain its legitimacy only if it worked for all, especially the poorest, the Union commerce minister, Mr Anand Sharma, told the delegates at the plenary session of the seventh ministerial conference of the WTO.
He cautioned that in an interdependent world, “beggar thy neighbour” policies would harm everyone; equally, lowering barriers to trade would be beneficial for all, according to a government statement issued here.
Speaking about the Doha Development Round on Monday night, Mr Sharma expressed concern that the major focus of engagement (between developed and developing countries) in the last three months had been on peripheral issues at the cost of a candid dialogue on key elements in the main areas of the negotiations.
The two sides appear, however, unwilling to offer concessions over the level of cuts to agriculture subsidies and industrial product tariffs that had caused an eight-year stalemate in the Doha round of global trade liberalisation talks.
But some ministers remain optimistic that differences could be narrowed.
The United States called on developing countries to make “meaningful market opening” but Brazil said it was “unreasonable” to expect emerging countries to be the only ones making further concessions in order to secure a Doha accord.
The US trade representative, Mr Ron Kirk, signalled that his country was prepared to enter the final stage of negotiations if developing nations hastened moves to open their rapidly growing markets.
World Trade Organisation (WTO) chief, Mr Pascal Lamy, in his opening remarks, warned ministers from 153 member states that time was not on their side even though about 80 per cent of the deal had been clinched.