http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/08072008/economy04.html

THE collapse of talks at the World Trade Organization (WTO) may have
given the Philippines reprieve from implementing more tariff cuts, but
a government senior policy analyst and nongovernment organizations
(NGOs) said the lull should be used to conduct a more comprehensive
assessment of the Doha Round on local industries.

NGOs also said intensive consultations among stakeholders who will be
affected by the Doha Round should be conducted to ensure that the
government decisions on multilateral trade will not cause more harm to
their sectors.

In a forum on the implications of the Doha Round on Philippine
economy, Lupiño Lazaro Jr., senior policy analyst at the Department of
Agriculture (DA), said members of the multisectoral Task Force on WTO
Agriculture Renegotiation (TF-WAR) had also recommended the need to
review the country's commitments in regional trade agreements (RTAs)
and bilateral free-trade agreements (FTAs).

"Once negotiations for the Doha Round are revived, the RTAs and
bilateral FTAs can be used as basis for the Philippines to form a
position," said Lazaro during the forum held in Quezon City Wednesday.

Rice Watch and Action Network (R1) lead convenor Jessica Reyes-Cantos
said the temporary reprieve should prompt government agencies, led by
the trade department and the DA, in forging a "coherent" agriculture
and industrial trade policy.

Members of TF-WAR who met on Monday had also called on the DA to
ensure the provision of the necessary support for farmers and
fishermen. NGOs noted that while the Urugay Round was concluded in
1995, the Philippines has yet to put in place the necessary safety
nets and financial support needed by farmers to compete in the
international market.

In the area of nonagriculture market access (Nama), the Tambuyog
Development Center (TDC) disclosed that the trade department had
presented scenarios during a multisectoral meeting held on Tuesday.

Ephraim Batungbacal of the TDC said industry representatives in the
meeting had touched on the issue of choosing between a higher Swiss
coefficient, but with lower flexibility or a lower Swiss coefficient
with higher flexibility.

At a coefficient of 25, the Philippines will no longer be able to
exempt sensitive products from tariff cuts while opting for a
coefficient of 22 will allow the Philippines to designate 5 percent of
sensitive products from tariff cuts or subject 10 percent of tariff
lines under the sensitive list at half cuts.

Using a lower coefficient of 20, the Philippines will be able to
exempt 6.5 percent of Nama tariff lines from tariff cuts or subject 12
percent of tariff lines from half cuts.

Batungbacal said some industry representatives are keen on opting for
the 20 coefficient since more sensitive products can be protected or
exempted from formula cuts.

Using the 20 coefficient is expected to have smaller tradeoffs as the
additional bound products that will have increased access to
Philippine markets are minimal and the reduction in bound rates is
minimal both for bound and unbound products.

Meanwhile, Lazaro said the stalemate at the WTO may last anywhere
between one and three years, at least until the new US administration
is in place. The impasse could stretch further, he said, with the
elections in major WTO players such as Brazil and India.

He also said the revival of the Doha Round could restart with
agreements under the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration of 2005 and
that the dispute settlement mechanism at the WTO may be revitalized to
address members' trade concerns.

Talks aimed at moving the Doha Round forward collapsed last week over
the disagreement on the Special Safeguard Mechanism. The scheme allows
developing countries to increase their agricultural tariff rates to
protect local industries against massive importation.