The European Union has offered to reduce average agricultural tariffs by 46 percent, its steepest ever farm tariff cuts, in a proposal aimed at breaking a deadlock in world trade talks, reports the World Bank press review Monday.
The EU said Friday it would reduce the highest tariff rates by 60 percent and eliminate all subsidies for farm exports if trading partners made similar moves at a World Trade Organization meeting in December.
The EU did not give a time frame for the proposed cuts. – Unlike many WTO countries, Europe actually applies these tariffs so the cuts are deep and real, EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said adding: – This will drive down our tariffs across the board.
Mandelson described the offer as “Europe’s bottom line,” saying it was at the outer limit of the negotiating mandate given to the EU by its 25 national governments. He said the EU was not prepared to take risks with the livelihoods of farmers in Europe and developing countries who would be hurt by more severe tariff reductions.
The EU is asking its trading partners to agree on agriculture by November 8 to pave the way for talks on other sectors.
African countries said on Saturday the EUs latest offer fell short of what was needed to break a deadlock in trade talks deemed critical for Africas welfare. – I think their level of ambition is very low, Lesotho Trade Minister Mpho Malie, an influential figure in global trade talks, said.
Senior African trade figures said that after significant technical proposals from the US, they expected the EU to produce a document that at least matched Washingtons.
The US also expressed disappointment Friday with the new proposal calling it insufficient. US Trade Representative Rob Portman said that the latest EU proposal translates into an average 39 percent cut by US calculation.
The Group of 20 developing countries is seeking an average 54 percent cut. Portman also criticized the new proposal as having a loophole in that it features too many ”sensitive” products, which will be exempted from tariff cuts.
The Wall Street Journal Europe meanwhile wrote in Mondays editorial (10/31) that with its “final” offer on agriculture market access in the Doha round of global trade talks, the EU managed to disappoint everyone while pleasing no one.
The United States, Brazil, Australia and others are not fooled by the EU offer of tariff cuts that are not nearly deep enough to provide meaningful new access to its agricultural markets.
Their position is supported by independent analysts: The World Bank says that to have any noticeable effect the highest farm-product tariffs should be cut by at least 75 percent. That is the same level that developing nations had asked for but below the 90 percent that the US suggested. Europe instead offered a 60 percent cut in its highest tariffs.
According to World Bank estimates, a tariff cut that low – combined with the EUs insistence on classifying 8 percent of its products as “sensitive” goods that would keep somewhat higher tariff levels – would amount to less than 16 billion US dollar in increased trade, compared to 182 billion dollar in potential gains if agricultural markets were fully liberalized.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
