Doha trade talks struggle to avoid deadlock

Less than a month after ministers spoke of their determination to reach a new trade deal this year, negotiations on the Doha round have ground almost to a halt, diplomats said on Wednesday.

Words such as 'frustration' and 'exhaustion' echoed round the corridors of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as diplomats pored over the revised negotiating texts issued this month to pave the way for a ministerial meeting.

"It's not looking good," said Faizel Ismail, the head of South Africa's WTO delegation. "It's not going to fly. We're ready to make a contribution, but we have to sell it to our constituents," he told Reuters.

Three meetings so far this week on the crucial agriculture text have produced virtually no further movement.

"People are just reiterating and hardening their positions. It's getting complicated," said the chief agriculture negotiator of one major developing country.

Rich and poor countries alike criticised the revision of the proposals on industry, complaining that the WTO mediator had created uncertainty by opening up the waivers to cuts in developing country tariffs in an effort to break a deadlock.

The Doha round was launched in November 2001 to boost the world economy and help developing countries lift themselves out of poverty by exporting more.

The talks, often declared dead, were revived last summer, and trade ministers meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month declared their determination to meet in March or April with a view to completing the deal by the end of the year.

The need to inject confidence this year into a world economy threatened by the global credit crunch and problems at banks stiffened their resolve -- many argue the Doha round may be sidelined when a new U.S. administration takes office next year.

What now risks becoming deadlocked is the bargain at the heart of the Doha round -- rich nations open their agriculture markets by cutting tariffs and subsidies, while developing countries open their markets for industrial goods and services by cutting tariffs and liberalising.