Deadlocked global trade talks will fail unless countries can find compromise in the coming hours, the chair of World Trade Organization negotiations said on Friday. “This is the blunt reality ... the situation is critical, edging between success and failure,” WTO chief Pascal Lamy told delegates at the talks, according to his spokesman. “Time is running out and the next 24 hours are crucial.” Trade ministers from around the world have made little progress since talks began on Monday aimed at saving the long-delayed Doha trade round which seeks to liberalize trade by reducing import tariffs and trade distorting subsidies. A group of ministers representing the world's seven major exporters was reconvened for talks that European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said were a chance for “one final attempt to close the gaps”. The meeting of ministers from Australia, Brazil, China, the EU, India, Japan and the United States was expected to end around 6:00 p.m. (1600 GMT) but could be followed up by a broader meeting, diplomats said. Delegates said they would know soon after that meeting whether the talks would fail. Emerging economies like Brazil and India have criticized the United States and European Union for failing to offer big enough cuts in subsidies and import tariffs which make it harder to compete with American and European farmers. Washington and Brussels both say they have given ground in the talks and are waiting for the developing countries to make concessions on opening their markets to imports of manufactured goods and services. Indian Commerce Minister Kamal Nath frustrated other WTO negotiators on Thursday when he said: “There is nothing which I have in my pocket to give.” Lamy has circulated a paper to the seven major countries outlining possible compromises on all the main divisive issues in farming and industry to find common ground, officials said. Brazil showed a new willingness to accept that in any major industrial goods sector at least 10-30 percent of products would be exposed to full tariff cuts, an official familiar with the talks said. European and US manufacturers fear their countries will further cut their tariffs but they may not be able to export to the likes of Brazil or India because such countries will be allowed to give some protection to certain key sectors. Industry associations from Argentina, India and South Africa issued a joint statement warning that current proposals in the talks risked damaging sectors in their countries that were major providers of employment. The Geneva meeting is seen as a last chance to close the Doha round this year after which it could be delayed further by elections in the United States and India and a change in the European Commission next year. Lamy has said a successful deal would inject confidence into a global economy beset by soaring fuel and food prices and the credit crunch, while failure could encourage protectionist sentiment and call into question the international community's ability to tackle problems like climate change. Urging ministers to make one final effort, Lamy said: “The world outside will not understand if we fail to grasp this opportunity to conclude a round that already has a great deal on the table and promises much more.”
