Negotiations will resume at a later date. That was the main outcome of the latest round of trade talks in Geneva, where delegates grappled with the thorny issue of farm subsidies.
Developing countries have been demanding an end to the massive subsidies rich countries pay their own farmers. They say that such subsidies violate free trade rules, allowing farmers in the US, Europe and Japan to sell their produce at prices non-subsidised farmers cannot compete with. Ending such subsidies would have profound effects on rural societies and the environment (Â鶹´«Ã½, 8 May, p 8).
There were fears that…
