Trade chiefs from Brazil, the EU and the US said they are inching closer to solutions for an accord to lower trade barriers, and it's possible to agree on a framework deal by an April 30 deadline.
"We don't yet have the contours of a deal, but nor do we have an empty canvas," EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson told journalists at a press conference on Sunday. "We had a solid and substantive discussion, with some candid exchange on our red lines, where we cannot go, but also exploring some real possibilities of where we can go."
The WTO's 149 governments have set an April 30 deadline to agree on solutions to lowering duties on farm and industrial goods ranging from milk powder to jets and computers, as well as lowering barriers on foreign investments. They have until the end of July to complete details of a broader trade accord that the World Bank says would be worth about US$96 billion to the international economy.
Mandelson and Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, US Trade Representative Rob Portman and WTO Director General Pascal Lamy met for two days of closed-door meetings in Rio de Janeiro.
Amorim said though the meetings made a "substantial" contribution to the trade talks, representatives said they need more precise numbers on market access by industrial and agricultural products, as well as the impact of domestic subsidies.
Brazil has spearheaded an effort by developing countries pushing for cuts in agricultural import barriers and subsidies in rich nations, which in exchange want fewer barriers for their industrial products and services in those markets.
Amorim on Saturday described the meetings here as a "reality check" in their efforts to find ways to reduce trade barriers as the April deadline looms.
Lamy has said that rich and developing nations must make more concessions if they are to fulfill their promise to boost the global economy and improve the lives of millions of people in both areas through freer trade.
"On each of the three issues -- agricultural tariffs, industrial tariffs and domestic agricultural subsidies -- each of the big actors has to move," Lamy told reporters on Saturday after meeting with business leaders in Sao Paulo.
The WTO has missed every deadline since beginning the current round of talks in Doha, the capital of Qatar, in 2001.
The talks were originally expected to be concluded by the beginning of last year.
Speaking about the Doha trade talks, Portman said, "It's important not to allow this important opportunity to slip between our fingers."
Brazil, backed by its partners in the G20 bloc of developing countries -- such as India and South Africa -- has insisted that the EU must first slash the trade subsidies given to its farmers.
Mandelson, backed by Portman, has argued that developing nations, led by Brazil, India and China, must grant much far-reaching access to their industrial imports and service industries in the current trade negotiations.
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