India hogs limelight at WTO

The development agenda of trade negotiations was jolted this year after the collapse of the Cancun WTO Ministerial but there was a ray of hope as the year closes with developed and developing countries showing flexibility to restart talks.

There was, however, success in the failure of the Ministerial as it was for the first time that developing countries were able to make their voice heard after forming a formidable group of 20 nations that included India, China, Brazil and South Africa.

Even as there were signs of revival of the global trade talks, after the General Council Meeting at Geneva in mid-December India's exports suffered set back with the growth dipping from a double digit to a single digit figure in the last two months after the rupee appreciation.

India and the WTO: News and issues
Click here to take today's poll 

The coming year would be crucial for India as it would have to make extra effort to prepare its traditional textile industry to gear itself to face the dismantling of quotas by next year-end. Textiles accounted for nearly one-third of the country's total exports of over $52 billion dollars annually.

With deadline for starting stalled trade negotiations looming large over WTO members developing nations' grouping of G-20 emerged as a new force.

Ahead of the General Council, WTO Director General Suppachai Pantichpakdi and European Union Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy met the representatives of the alliance at their Ministerial meeting in Brazil.

While the G-20 and EU joint communique displayed the resolve of both sides to take the negotiations ahead, the General Council failed to thaw the coldness, which had overtaken the trade talks but with some signs of flexibility.

Though nations were deadlocked on the issue of enhanced market access and reduction in export subsidies and domestic support in agriculture, there was some good news as developed nations especially the US showed some flexibility leading to the agreement on Para 6 of Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights and Public Health.

With this deal in place, countries, which do not have manufacturing capability would be able to issue compulsory licences in the wake of national health emergencies for medicines, which would be supplied in different packaging, a move expected to benefit generic manufacturers.

Government has in line with WTO commitment brought about a legislation to introduce product patents regime in the country.

On framework approach in agriculture and non-agricultural market access, the negotiations could not progress with some developing nations including India favouring a framework only if certain conditions were fulfilled fully reflecting the principles laid down in the Doha mandate.

Facing disappointment at the multilateral forum, the US threatened to go the bilateral way and hastened the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas.

But India signed agreements with Thailand and ASEAN and was moving forward for preferential trading agreement with Mercosur and South African Customs Union besides resolving its existing Free Trade Agreement with Sri Lanka.

There appears to be some movement on Indo-Bangla FTA and South Asian Free Trade Agreement in the light of the SAARC Summit in early January in Islamabad.

At the Indo-EU Summit the two pledged to double bilateral trade to euro 50 billion in the next few years.

The year also saw a remarkable turn in Indo-Chinese relations as both the countries decided to coordinate positions at WTO and enhance trade ties.