C Five core members of the World Trade Organization ended hours of hard bargaining early on Thursday with an accord that could open the way to a deal on a trade pact by the full membership, a leading negotiator said. "It brings the possibility of an agreement (of the full membership) nearer," the negotiator, who had been involved in the talks, told Reuters. The five members are the United States, the European Union, Australia, India and Brazil. They are considered to represent a wide range of trade interests within the 147-state body. The WTO has given itself a deadline of midnight Friday to reach outline deals in four key areas: farm and industrial goods, services and a new customs' code. The talks are intended to put the troubled Doha Round of free trade negotiations back on track. The negotiator, who declined to be named or to provide details, said that the five members had agreed how to word all points in the hotly disputed text on agricultural reform, which is widely seen as crucial to an overall pact. The outcome of the talks between the five was seen as likely to set the tone for proposals that the chief mediators, WTO chief Supachai Panitchpakdi and executive General Council chairman Shotaro Oshima of Japan, will put to the full body later Thursday. |