Doha talks: US asks India to open markets

The US asked India to show flexibility and allow more access to its markets especially for non-agricultural products for reviving the stalled Doha Round of trade talks.

"If the Doha Round does not materialise that would not be on account of the US agricultural subsidies ... major emerging economies (India and Brazil) are not coming up with enough market access, especially in non-agricultural  areas such as services including financial services," US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who will be visiting India shortly said.

He said though not easy, completion of WTO Doha Round was within the reach.

"The key to Doha is going to be market access by the major developing countries (Brazil  and India) that have been pushing the developed

countries to further open their markets which are already quite open," Paulson said.

While the major developing countries have been asking the rich nations for more markets they are "resisting opening theirs," Paulson said at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington.

He said with India the issues of agriculture and subsistence farmers have not been resolved.

"We need more movement in non-agriculture areas, the manufacturing tariffs and services" said Paulson, visiting in India from October 27-31.

He said the US was quite comfortable negotiating within the texts (proposed by the WTO in July).

Paulson added that India has done well in areas like information technology and aviation which were never regulated were liberalised.