The World Trade Organisation offered about 30 developing countries on Tuesday a range of options to cut industrial goods tariffs in the hope of finally concluding the Doha round of trade talks.<br/><br/>In his most recent negotiating paper, chief industrial goods negotiator Don Stephenson -- who is also Canada's ambassador to the WTO -- said developing economies could choose to reduce tariffs to a maximum of 19 to 26 percent, a wider range than previous proposals in February.<br/><br/>However, this overall range is composed of three distinct bands (19-21 percent, 21-23 percent and 23-26 percent), which have their own implications for any exemptions.<br/><br/>Countries applying the lowest range (known as a "coefficient" in WTO terminology) would be able to exclude up to 14 percent of their most sensitive industrial tariff lines from the full effect of the formula.<br/><br/>For the middle band, countries would be able to either "shelter" up to 10 percent of their most sensitive tariff lines, which would be subject to cuts equal to half of the agreed formula reduction.<br/><br/>Alternatively, they could exclude 5 percent of all products providing they do not exceed 5 percent of the total value of all NAMA (non-agricultural market access) imports.<br/><br/>The top band would not allow any tarrif line exemptions.<br/><br/>Stephenson also offered the possibility of special treatment for South Africa, which was classed as a "developed" country in the previous global trade deal known as the Uruguay Round, and for Venezuela, citing the "very special concentrated structure of the country's exports".<br/><br/>The WTO's Doha round of talks to reduce trade barriers was launched in the Qatari capital in November 2001 with the aim of reaching a deal by 2004.<br/><br/>It has foundered ever since, mainly over disputes between developed and developing countries on agricultural subsidies and industrial tariffs.<br/><br/>
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