Revised WTO texts are circulated

WORLD Trade Organisation mediators circulated new negotiating texts on Thursday that will serve as the blueprint for an outline deal in the WTO’s long-running Doha round, trade officials said.

They will form the basis for discussions when ministers meet in Geneva in the week of July 21 to try to agree the outlines of a Doha deal, named for negotiations launched in the Qatari capital in November 2001 to free up world trade.

“These revised texts set the stage for a decisive moment in the Doha round,” WTO director general, Pascal Lamy, said.