DAVOS, Jan 26: WTO members are hoping to agree on the most difficult parts of the stalled Doha round of trade talks in April, the Swiss economy minister said Saturday, raising new hopes of a breakthrough.

Doris Leuthard, who has invited negotiators from 20 countries for talks on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, said ministers were working towards a ministerial meeting in April to agree on trade in farm and industrial products.

“We decided we will have probably a ministerial meeting in April,” she told reporters, adding that it would likely take place in Geneva.

She cautioned however that “the ministers will meet only when the papers and the technical work can lead to solutions” for both areas, as well as other sticking points such as trade in services, trade law and product protection.

“The next two or three months are crucial to see if we close the round this year or not,” Brazil’s foreign minister and trade negotiator Celso Amorim told journalists.

“I am hopeful we are able to do it, of course it will cost some effort on the part of everyone,” he added.

WTO members launched a new round of negotiations to agree a global trade deal to reduce trade barriers and subsidies in Doha, Qatar, in 2001.

The round has been bogged down for the past six years because of disputes between developed and developing countries over agricultural subsidies and import tariffs on industrial goods.

The Doha round was meant to be finished by the end of 2004, but the WTO is now targeting a final deal before the end of 2008 between its 151 member countries.

Around 20 ministers took part in informal talks in Davos, including US Trade Representative Susan Schwab, Peter Mandelson for the European Union, Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath as well as ministers from Australia, Brazil and Indonesia.

There was also a meeting in Davos of ministers from the G20 — a group of developing countries opposed to farm subsidies in the developed world.

World Trade Organisation (WTO) head Pascal Lamy had stressed on Friday that a final deal was possible this year.

“We probably can conclude this big negotiation within 2008,” Lamy said.

“Basically, the politics of it are doing better and the leaders ... they want this.”

He added that momentum could come from it being the final year of US President George W. Bush’s term in office. Bush steps down in January.

“The answer from the US side now is clear. Bush wants a deal before leaving. That’s absolutely crucial,” Lamy added.

Leuthard and Amorim talked of a window of opportunity and a “window of necessity” for concluding the Doha round this year.

Amorim argued that a global trade deal could help stabilise financial markets, which have been gripped by volatile trading stemming from the subprime crisis and problems in the banking sector.

“It’s not only a window of opportunity, but because of the financial crisis it has become a window of necessity,” he said, arguing that a global deal would give confidence to investors.

The other emerging power in the trade negotiations, India, has also expressed support for a deal to provide a bright spot at a time of pessimism about the year ahead.

“With the gloomy world economic outlook there could perhaps be one silver lining to this, and that is the conclusion of the trading round,” Nath said on Wednesday.

“For the last several years we have been coming here and saying that by the time we meet next year we will have closed the round. I hope we don’t have to say this next year,” he told a news conference.

“We are hoping that the signals we get from the major players is a step forward towards the final mile. As we know this is a marathon and the last mile is the toughest mile.”—AFP