Wednesday July 22, 09:06 AM
APEC trade ministers protectionism warning
By Bernice Han
SINGAPORE (AFP) - Asia-Pacific (002790.KS - news) trade ministers Wednesday said here that the worldwide economic slump may be nearing its end but warned against protectionism while pledging to work harder for a new WTO deal by 2010.
"The global economy appears to be bottoming out, but the outlook remains uncertain and significant risks remain," the ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum said in a statement.
"We will therefore persist with efforts to support growth and facilitate trade and investment flows, keep our markets open, and give a new push to concluding the Doha Round."
The World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Round of talks were launched in the Qatari capital in late 2001 to forge a new deal on goods and services.
However, it has repeatedly foundered, notably over disputes between rich and developing nations on agricultural and industrial products.
The APEC ministers, whose economies account for half the world's economic output, said the "best insurance" against protectionism will be a "successful and speedy conclusion" of the Doha Round.
APEC ministers will "identify specific gaps" where more needs to be done and "accelerate efforts to reach consensus in the more contentious areas of agriculture and manufactured goods."
APEC members' WTO negotiators in Geneva will be given "a stronger mandate to exercise maximum flexibility in the talks so that positions can converge further."
Singapore Trade Minister Lim Hng Kiang, who chaired the APEC meeting, said at a news conference "we acknowledge that there are growing protectionist pressures worldwide."
"We are very conscious that if protectionism is not controlled, this could be a severe setback to our growth prospects," he said.
APEC members will "avoid implementing any measures that have protectionist effects even if they are compatible with WTO rules," Lim said.
APEC was started 20 years ago to promote trade and strengthen economic cooperation in the Pacific rim.
Its 21 members -- including the United States, China, Japan and Russia -- account for more than half of the world's gross domestic product and almost 44 percent of international trade.
The meeting in Singapore came two weeks after a Group of Eight summit in L'Aquila (NYSE: ILA - news) , Italy, where leaders of the world's most powerful nations and emerging economies agreed to wrap up the Doha talks by 2010.
"A lot of progress has been made over the past eight years since the Doha round was launched and we intend to build on this progress," Lim said.
"In this spirit, we agreed to instruct our officials to intensify their engagement in the process by exploring all avenues to get nearer to consensus," the Singapore trade minister added.
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