Little progress so far

Desk Report

Marathon trade talks limped into another day on Friday but with little progress so far on the tortuous negotiations ministers said it would soon be time to decide whether a deal was at all possible.

The make-or-break talks, called this week to crack the deadlock in the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) long-running Doha round, have failed to move far in the intractable issues ranging from farm subsidies to car import duties.
 
Brazil's Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said after Thursday's meeting ended that the talks had not broken up so far, and there was interest in continuing, but time was running out.
 
"Tomorrow is the day in which we must know whether it's possible or not. Maybe we don't finish everything but you must have an idea whether it's possible or not," he told reporters.
 
US Trade Representative Susan Schwab said that despite some progress the talks had not moved as much as Washington hoped when it offered on Tuesday to slash its farm subsidies.
 
"Let's put it this way: some countries are stretching more than others and we'll see tomorrow whether everybody is prepared to do their share," she told reporters.
 
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
 
The United States and European Union want developing countries to open up their markets for industrial goods and services, and accuse them of trying to avoid real liberalization that would create new business opportunities.
 
But big developing countries like Brazil and India say the rich nations are not doing enough to break down the tariff walls and subsidies that distort farm trade.

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