Regional, bilateral pacts could block global trade talks<\/p>\n
Agence France-Presse, Bandar Seri Begawan<\/p>\n
Asia-Pacific business leaders, experts and economic officials
\nbegan a meeting here on Tuesday amid fears that bilateral and
\nregional pacts could impede efforts toward a more liberalized
\nglobal trading regime.<\/p>\n
Brunei's leader Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, speaking late on
\nMonday at a welcome dinner for the Pacific Economic Cooperation
\nCouncil (PECC) meeting delegates, urged participants to ensure
\nthat such trading arrangements support multilateralism under the
\nWorld Trade Organization (WTO).<\/p>\n
The impact of regional and bilateral free trade accords, whose
\nnumbers have been increasing in the Asia-Pacific region, is a key
\ntopic in the PECC sessions ahead of the Sept. 10-14 WTO
\nministerial talks in Cancun, Mexico.<\/p>\n
Negotiators hope to make progress in Cancun toward a more
\nliberalized global trading environment by tearing down tariff and
\nother barriers in areas such as agriculture and services. But
\nbitter disagreements between the richer and poorer countries
\nthreaten to block any major movement.<\/p>\n
The PECC, an advisory body to governments in the Asia-Pacific
\nregion, includes top think-tank experts, corporate leaders and
\nofficials.<\/p>\n
Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, Thai Prime Minister
\nThaksin Shinawatra and Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah
\nAhmad Badawi are scheduled to address the PECC delegates on
\nWednesday, the final day of their plenary meeting in Brunei's
\ncapital.<\/p>\n
\"In a few days, the WTO ministerial meeting will be taking
\nplace in Cancun. One pressing matter that I know you have been
\nworking on is particularly sensitive,\" Brunei's Sultan Hassanal
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"This is the emergence of an increasing number of bilateral,
\nregional and cross-regional trading arrangements. It is sometimes
\ncalled a 'newer regionalism.'<\/p>\n
\"It could well present a basic challenge to the concept of
\n'open regionalism.' It could certainly impede our efforts at
\ncommunity building and economic development.\"<\/p>\n
Hassanal said however that \"realities\" dictated that such
\nbilateral and regional trading arrangements were here to stay.<\/p>\n
\"If so, how can we ensure that such pursuits are transparent
\nand constructive? How can we be confident that they indeed form
\nbuilding blocs for freer trade?\" he asked.<\/p>\n
Even the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush is
\nalready tempering expectations from the Cancun meeting as the
\ndeep divisions throw a Jan. 1, 2005 deadline for final agreement
\ninto serious doubt, senior trade analysts based in Washington
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The analysts said a deal is more likely to come in 2007, if at
\nall.<\/p>\n
WTO trade ministers had set the 2005 deadline in November 2001
\nwhen they launched the agenda for the talks in the Qatari capital
\nof Doha.<\/p>\n
A World Bank report presented at a PECC workshop here on
\nMonday said the success of the Doha Agenda to tear down trade
\nbarriers in sensitive economic sectors such as agriculture and
\nservices would raise incomes, reduce poverty and speed up growth.<\/p>\n
Incomes could rise by US$270 billion to $520 billion US, and
\nthe number of people mired in poverty could be cut by about 140
\nmillion people, many of them in Africa.<\/p>\n
\"But to realize (the) development promise, an agreement has to
\nreduce barriers to the products the poor (countries) produce,\"
\nthe bank said.<\/p>\n
It noted that developing countries have failed to penetrate
\nagricultural markets of rich nations and protectionism in
\nindustrialized countries has remained high since the previous
\nUruguay Round of global trade talks.<\/p>\n
Middle-income nations, however, must also be willing to lower
\ntariffs, while poor countries should rely less on preferential
\ntreatment and carry out reforms in trade-related institutions,
\nthe bank added.<\/p>",
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