Difficult WTO talks

In the talks currently taking place in Geneva the members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) are trying to reach agreement on the liberalisation of world trade. The economics newspaper Financial Times Deutschland is sceptical about whether the Doha round will be able to agree on a reduction in tariffs. "Unlike the G20 group of the most important developing countries, the EU has great difficulty presenting a united stance. If one of its actors sticks his neck out too far, it may well happen that he is quickly hauled back into line. ... There is a strange discrepancy between the lack of enthusiasm of the negotiators and the increasing urgency of global problems. Rising food prices on world markets have made clear in drastic terms what advantages a further liberalisation of trade might have. Every step in the direction of isolation exacerbates the problem further. Yet it is unlikely that the weary boxers in the WTO ring will pull the key punch this time around. ... Free trade is no longer an issue with which to win majorities - not on either side of the Atlantic."

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