Archive - 2005 - Article

With only days left before the World Trade Organization holds its sixth ministerial meeting in Hong Kong, a new report claims that the agreements reached at these trade negotiations pose a threat to people and their environment around the world.

Least developed country members as a group were granted extension of transitional period for 7.5 years to apply the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement. The extension is however subject to conditions that have been criticized by experts as severely constraining the benefits of the extension granted.

special bulletin on the WTO replaces the usual Summer newsletter of ARENA for this Summer 2005

The Appellate Body, on 5 December 2005, issued its Report regarding the compliance panel's rulings in the case 'United States

Two new reports jointly released today by the ICFTU and Solidar raise alarm bells over the planned further liberalisation of TCF and general manufacturing sectors by the WTO.

The U.S. Congress would probably reject a proposed deal by global trade ministers to give duty-free access to the world's poorest nations if the plan does not also open new markets for American farmers

a link to an EU non-paper which proposes language for NAMA. The non-paper was floated in the green rooms and widely rejected.

Ten days off the ministerial meeting of the WTO in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, on 2 December, published a document proposing a radical reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)

Trade ministers of the United States, the European Union, Brazil, India, Japan and Australia meeting here on Saturday in an informal session hosted by the United States agreed broadly on what can be delivered in next week's Hong Kong trade conference for least-developed countries

WTO members were engaging in intense informal negotiations anddiscussions on Friday, 2 December focused on how to respondto the revised draft Ministerial text to be transmitted to the WTO'sHong Kong Ministerial Conference starting 13 December.