Global financial service talks on track: WTO

Global financial service talks on track: WTO

HONG KONG (Reuter): Talks for a pact to open up global
financial services were on track despite market turmoil in
Southeast Asia, the head of the WTO said yesterday.

"Practically with all the governments I've had discussions
with here, there is a strong will to participate," World Trade
Organization Director-General Renato Ruggiero told reporters.

The pact could help prevent future economic crises by
strengthening Asian banking, insurance and other financial
institutions through greater competition, he said.

"When you have stronger financial institutions in your
country, you have a better situation to deal with erratic capital
movement," he said.

Ruggiero said 97 countries had made provisional commitments
for liberalization in the sector. The WTO also has 19 offers to
liberalize, representing 33 governments, he added.

"We are moving towards seven new governments (who) told us
they will present their offers quite soon," he said on the last
day of the annual meetings of the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund.

He said he was "encouraged" by recent discussions with
ministers from Latin America and Asia, including talks with
Malaysian Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesday morning.

"But it would be wrong to argue that because there are
encouraging moves, we are at the end of the road," he said. "We
are not at the end of the road.

"There are promises that still have to be implemented," he
added. "So it will still be a difficult negotiation."

He planned to meet Thai officials later on Thursday.

U.S. officials have softened their public stance since walking
out of earlier talks in 1995 arguing that emerging economies were
not offering enough for a global pact.

They say they understood the political problems faced by
Southeast Asian nations but had hoped to be deeper into
negotiations ahead of the pact's December 12 deadline.

Washington argues that other countries must agree to a wider
-- even phased -- opening of their markets before it can agree to
a pact which would throw open its own sector under WTO rules that
bar discrimination among trading partners.

The recent Asian currency crisis, triggered by Thailand's de
factor devaluation in its baht currency on July 2, has raised
fears about easing financial sector controls.

Some critics argue that liberalization could make the
currencies of developing countries more vulnerable to speculators
while damaging domestic firms.

"The influence of this crisis on our negotiation is more a
perception than a reality of the difficulty," Ruggiero said.