World Trade Organization (WTO)
WTO Doha Round Bulletin
Week ending 19 March 2004 (Issue 2004/10)
Key Issues
- Services Cluster Meets
- Rules Negotiating Group agrees to go informal
- Forthcoming meetings in Geneva
- Contact us
Services Cluster Meets
A two week cluster of GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) meetings will commence in Geneva on Monday 22 March 2004. The cluster will include meetings of the Council for Trade in Services and all its subsidiary bodies, "Friends' Groups" dealing informally with particular sectoral issues and bilateral meetings to discuss services requests and offers. There will also be a two day workshop on domestic regulation.
Rules Negotiating Group agrees to go informal
The WTO Rules Negotiating Group met on 16 March 2004 for the first time since Cancun. Members discussed a paper submitted by the "Friends of Anti-dumping Negotiations" (FANS) (a group of countries including Japan, Brazil and nine others) on the concept of "affiliatedparties", relevant to the calculation of dumping margins. All members agreed that the issue of affiliation should be discussed, although the FANS proposals failed to win universal support.
Members also agreed to replace the current pattern of formal meetings and exchanges of questions and answers, with more regular, focussed technical discussions between members in an informal mode, coupled with the submission of "elaborated proposals" by set deadlines prior to the holding of the actual formal meetings.
Forthcoming meetings in Geneva
MARCH
22 Committee on Specific Commitments
22-26 Committee on Agriculture –Special Session
23 Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade
23 Committee on Trade in Financial Services
24 Working Party on GATS Rules
25 Committee on Agriculture
25 Council for Trade in Services
25 Dispute Settlement Body –Special Session
29-31 Negotiating Group on Market Access
31 Working Party on Domestic Regulation
APRIL
1 Committee on Trade and Development – Special Session
1 Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration
2 Council for Trade in Services – Special Session
2 Committee on Market Access
Contact Us
Trade Policy Section
Office of Trade Negotiations
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
BARTON ACT 0221
Fax: (02) 6261 3514
or e-mail trade.consult@dfat.gov.au
This bulletin is issued by the Office of Trade Negotiations, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It summarises key WTO Doha Round-related activities over the past week.