Archive - 2005

The Chair of the WTO agriculture negotiations, Ambassador Crawford Falconer of New Zealand, has warned members that 'material convergence', particularly on market access, was needed by 31 October, otherwise he would have to report that objectives for the Hong Kong Ministerial cannot be met.

The WTO issued the second award of the arbitrator regarding the European Communities' implementation of the waiver granted by the Doha Ministerial Conference in relation to its banana regime

The Group of 20 developing countries has presented six new proposals for the WTO agriculture negotiations. The papers were distributed at two informal meetings on agriculture held at the WTO on 21 October.

Mr Chirac used the Hampton Court summit to fire a warning shot across the bows of Peter Mandelson, EU trade commissioner, who will today present a new European offer on agriculture to help break the deadlock in the Doha world trade talks.

Lower economic output will slow world trade growth in 2005, according to WTO annual publication International Trade Statistics released on 27 October 2005.

Many developing countries continued to raise objections to the inclusion of 'numerical targets and indicators' as a negotiating approach in a revised text on services for the Ministerial Declaration for the WTO's Hong Kong conference.

EC proposal as regards the benchmarks.

People’s Action will be sending out a biweekly English newsletter to share news about anti-globalization struggles in Korea and updates on preparation of the ‘Korean People’s Struggle Delegation’.

The statement has been signed by 35 groups from over 30 countries representing development, environment, gender, fair trade and religious groups as well as farmers, trade union related groups and research groups.

Further troubles for Brussels' negotiating position in worldwide trade liberalisation talks emerged on Tuesday (25 October), as 11 member states reaffirmed their opposition against a commission-proposed sugar reform.