WTO talks suspended over farm subsidies

Efforts failed on Monday in Geneva to negotiate an agreement between India, Brazil, the US, the EU, Japan and Australia and put the Doha trade round into indefinite suspension unless new consensus emerges.


Rows over access to agricultural product markets and farm subsidies have been a stumbling block throughout the negotiations and were responsible for the failure of talks that began in 2001.


Negotiations collapsed as the US pressed for lower tariffs on agricultural imports, while the EU, Japan and Australia insisted that American farm subsidies must first be cut.