Abstract:

Following the 'Seattle fiasco', the World Trade Organisation has started to get back on course with the launch, in Doah last November, of a new round of multilateral trade negotiations on two tracks. The 'market access' track is addressing the liberalisation of trade in agricultural products, services, and industrial products. But progress depends on the 'preparatory studies' track considering the modalities for extending the WTO system to new areas, especially investment and competition -major goals of the European Union and Japan. Those modalities are to be settled at the WTO ministerial conference in Mexico next year, making it every bit as crucial as the Doha ministerial was last year, with much more required before then. First, more has to be done on an unspoken 'institutional reform' track and, second, the 'majors' have to raise their sites to inspire the political commitment neccessary to the success of the negotiations.


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