'Unfinished trade agenda hurting Doha Round'

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Geneva, Jul 22: As the mini-ministerial meeting at the World Trade Organisation’s Doha Round talks entered the crunch phase where member countries will put forth the numbers on their reduction commitments in agriculture, manufacturing and services, India, on Tuesday, highlighted the huge unfinished agenda of trade reform that is staring at the 30-odd ministers gathered here to try and clinch a global trade deal.

“Nothing has been settled. A lot of figures are still remaining to be resolved. Since this is the first round where numbers would be discussed by the ministers, you will find countries making offers and counter offers. They will sleep over it and come back again tomorrow and respond to counteroffers” Indian commerce secretary G K Pillai told reporters here.

“If there is a consensus on agriculture and industrial goods, then all the ministers will agree that on services, the countries should now put in the final offers by September 15,” he added.

Though India has already indicated its positive response on many requests on market access in several services sectors received by it from its trading partners, it was disappointed on not getting strong signals in reciprocation.

“We are hoping to get these signals in the Signalling Conference. If we do not get these signals, we will find it tough to sustain our enthusiasm during the talks on agriculture and Nama (Non Agricultural Market Access or industrial goods) modalities,” Pillai said.

India expects a positive outcome from the July 24 Signalling Conference on Services negotiations, but in that conference if any country gives something, it can always take it back if the offer by the other countries is not good enough. India has been aggressively pushing for substantial market access for its services in the developed world, especially regarding free movement of service suppliers across borders and outsourcing

Reiterating that it will engage constructively to deliver the development dimension of the Doha Round, India, however, said that the WTO negotiation texts on agriculture and industrial goods continues to contain “intrinsic imbalances in certain areas”.

India said these flaws should soon be addressed as the already fragile livelihood of millions of poor people in developing countries was at stake.

It was important that all the issues concerning developing countries are addressed positively and with sympathy and not in mercantilist considerations, India said in a statement.