Kamal Nath talks tough at WTO meet

Vivian Fernandes, CNBC-TV18

Commerce Minister Kamal Nath talked tough at the World Trade Organisation, or WTO meeting, has said that a couple of proposals under discussion could be deal-breakers.

Commerce Minister Kamal Nath came to Geneva basking in the after glow of the victory in Parliament and the welcome that he got added to that sense of triumph. The confidence vote, he told negotiators, was an exercise in addressing divergences through dialogue and debate, when actually it was the very opposite, it is about pushing your way through on the strength of numbers.

Kamal Nath, said “I wish there is a vote here. We know which way it will go.”

Representatives of Industry Chambers CII and FICCI met their European counterparts and made known their opposition to being told which sectors India should have zero import duties on, known in jargon as mandatory sectorals. The choice of designating a sector as zero duty, should be a matter of discretion not obligation, they said. The Europeans want a zero duty agreement on automobiles, chemicals and textile and clothing. Indian industry is also opposed to a trade off between exemptions from import duty cuts for infant industries and higher duty cuts in other industries. On this, and on the so-called anti-concentration clause that requires the duty exemptions to be spread out rather than be limited to a few industry groups, they could support in the government.

Nath, said, “Anti-concentration, de minimus, must not result in erosion of industry. That would be a deal breaker.”

After his meeting on Tuesday with major groupings, the WTO Director General reported progress, that is unevenly distributed. The emphasis is on cutting agricultural import duties in the top band, that is above 75%. The four African economies wrecked by US cotton subsidies, has called for a renewed engagement to end them. The conditional US offer to limit trade distorting farm subsidies to USD 15 billion a year, has received a cautious welcome.

The Minister said, “It has started at the ground floor, It is a start. Do not expect the start to be the end.”

Celso Amorim, Brazilian Foreign Minister, said “We would not have got the US to make the offer on subsidies if it was not for G20.”

The Indian delegation is pleased with progress in special products, that is the list of farm products exempt from duty cuts, but are annoyed at the attempt to deny unfettered use of special safeguards measures to deal with surges in imports of those commodities on which duties have been lowered. To resolve differences, the WTO Director General has now broken the negotiators here into nine small groups on agricultural and industrial issues. He also got the Norwegian trade minister to assist him to Geta fix on expanding the scope of geographical indicators beyond wines and spirits to cover stuff like Darjeeling tea and also on the proposal to make disclosure of traditional knowledge mandatory in patent applications. The services talks have been postponed by a day to Friday. In short there is a serious attempt here at compromise to avert another failure.