Is Timing Right For Services Signalling Conference?

Services Industry advocates are worried that the Director-General has the timing for the services signalling conference wrong. This is supposed to be held tomorrow, but this would be ahead of revised texts on agriculture and NAMA being circulated. WTO Secretariat sources are telling industry groups that key developing countries are holding back on the quality of their pledges on liberalisation for important sectors until there has been some progress in the agriculture and NAMA negotiations. Signs of this progress are unlikely until Friday at the earliest. Assuming they don't break down first, it is clear that this negotiation is going to stretch until at least Tuesday of next week. Might Saturday not be a better day for the services signalling conference some ask?

Meanwhile the EU is demanding that the DG keep the timetable as scheduled with the signalling conference tomorrow. The EU says that it needs to see progress on services before it can make any further changes in position on agriculture and NAMA. This has industry even more confused.