No breakthrough in the WTO trade talks

July 29, 2005

Two days of ministerial talks have ended without agreement and evidence of a possible deadlock between developing and developed countries.

148 member countries are trying to reach a consensus on how to proceed with the Doha round of talks which are scheduled to be agreed in 2006. However, they are now behind the deadlines they set and the Geneva meeting saw no progress.

Richer countries are being accused of demanding too many concessions in return for opening up trade and reducing subsidies while they say that the poorer countries are holding them to ransom by blocking progress.