WTO chief upbeat as dates are set for talks By Frances Williams in Geneva
Mike Moore, director-general of the World Trade Organisation, declared on Monday that the WTO was "very much in business" as trade envoys agreed to press ahead with liberalisation talks on agriculture and services despite the failure of December's ministerial meeting in Seattle to launch a new trade round.
Mr Moore was speaking after a meeting of the WTO's ruling general council set dates for the start of the two sets of negotiations which are mandated under the existing 1986-93 Uruguay Round trade agreements. Work starts on the services talks in late February and on agriculture in mid-March.
"With work under way constructively in agriculture and services, discussions on the other issues can also progress," Mr Moore said, noting that these two sectors accounted for about half the world economy and employed three-quarters of the global workforce.
WTO members also on Monday backed consultations on a speedy resolution of problems arising out of implementation of the Uruguay Round accords, an important issue for developing countries. They also urged industrialised nations to revive an initiative to grant duty-free access to the exports of the world's poorest countries, and agreed to discuss reforms of the WTO's decision-making procedures.
Monday's meeting appears to signal a significant shift in mood among WTO members after the confused and bitter aftermath of the Seattle debacle. Trade diplomats say the emphasis now is on moving forward with "confidence-building measures" that aim to deal with immediate problems and provide a foundation for the possible future launch of a trade round.
However, despite the expressed desire of the big trading powers for the round to get under way this year, few expect any move before the new US presidential team is in place next February.
Fundamental differences remain unresolved on the scope of any global round, with the EU and Japan favouring broadly-based talks to include new areas such as investment and competition rules and the US wanting a narrower focus on improving market access for goods and services.
The Seattle meeting also foundered on developing country opposition to US attempts to put labour standards on the WTO agenda.
The agriculture and services talks will start with no timetable or agreement on detailed objectives. While the services negotiations are fairly uncontroversial, many countries have made clear that they will seek to link progress in these talks with those on agriculture.