Word: doha
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That sense of foreboding was most obvious in talks on whether the Doha Round of trade liberalization can be concluded before President Bush's "fasttrack" authority to do trade deals expires on June 30. (After that, any deal would be nibbled to death by powerful interest groups in Congress.) Trade ministers met and remet on the margins of Davos, chivvied into shape by the indefatigable Pascal Lamy, director general of the World Trade Organization. At the end of the week, Susan Schwab, the U.S. Trade Representative, talked optimistically about the chances of a deal. "There's been a real step...
...Despite the Doha Round's failure so far, world trade is booming. Doesn't that suggest that a deal may not be as important as you think? World trade is booming because previous rounds and trade deals have succeeded in driving tariffs down. Doha can push liberalization further and spread the benefits more widely across the global economy. Success will lock in new levels of openness and guard against recession and protectionism...
...suggest that a global deal would benefit developing countries especially. But are they doing enough to make it happen? Developing countries will be asked to make a proportionate contribution to the Doha package. But a key group of emerging economies like China, Brazil and India are now in a position to do more. These G-20 countries have played a clear leadership role in the Round. For a final deal they must step up to the table with strong offers...
...What will happen if the Doha Round really is pronounced dead? The inevitable response will be each for himself, and every continent will be the worse for it. The consequences would be, firstly, that we would miss this wonderful economic opportunity; second, there would be a weakening of the WTO, and this would particularly harm developing countries; and third, it would remove an important bulwark against protectionism...
...ambitious five years ago when it launched the Doha Round? The world trade system is growing and changing at an incredible pace. The WTO and the current machinery for the Doha Round can't keep pace. But it can be adapted and put back on track. I believe a deal is doable, and that it can be done within the narrow time frame that we have ahead...