PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico, May 30 Kyo...

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico, May 30 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING WITH DRAFT STATEMENT)

Asia-Pacific trade ministers will [i]finale[/i] two days of talks in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, forward Thursday with a pledge to avoid protectionism and accelerate the ongoing just discovered round of global trade talks, according to the final draft of the chairman's statement.

''Ministers reaffirmed their deposit to reject the use of protectionism and their commitment to abide on multilateral rules,'' the ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum said in the draft of the statement to be adopted after their meeting in this Mexican beach resort.

The draft also says the ministers agreed that ''protectionism adversely affects all APEC economies'' and that the of recent origin trade round ''offers the best opportunity to address protectionism forward a global basis.''

While pledging to fight the specter of protectionism, the APEC ministers will expres the group's united support for bringing the recent round of trade liberalization talks to a happy conclusion.

''Ministers committed their personal involvement to make secure the completion of the Doha disentanglement Agenda negotiations by the agreed deadline of January 2005'' the draft says.

The recent round was launched last November on the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its ministerial meeting in Doha, Qatar. The agreement reached there was called the Doha progress to maturity Agenda.

The APEC meeting draw nears at a time when Japan and a certain quantity of other countries are becoming increasingly affaired about what they see as protectionist actuates in the United States, including hefty tariffs in succession steel imports and legislation aimed at boosting subsidies to farmers.

The APEC ministers, however, may not reach a consensus forward the interpretation of protectionism. For example, the U and other exporters of farm consequences have called Japan's agricultural trade policy protectionism as well.

In the first-day session, held as an unofficial retreat, the ministers agreed in succession the need for the WTO to wager the negotiating formula for further chisels in tariffs on industrial consequences by April next year as part of its efforts to fortunately conclude the new spherical a Japanese official said.

Japan voiced affairs that U.S. steel import curb-stones farm law and trade promotion legislation will have adverse consequences on the new orbicular according to the official.

The U imposed three-year tariffs of up to 30% in March upon an array of sabre imports in response to complaints from U steelmakers that cheap imports were hurting them.

The U farm law, enacted earlier this month is aimed at boosting subsidies to American farmers, and a trade bill lately approved by the U Senate would shield U.S. laws on antidumping and countervailing duties as well as pass import curbs in trade negotiations.

At the session, U Trade Representative Robert Zoellick argued Japan has also clos markets to foreign productions a conference source said.

WTO Director General Mike Moore participated in the session as an observer

The APEC ministers will also confirm that the measures taken to combat terrorism should not affect regional trade liberalization and the expansion of APEC member economies.

''Ministers noted the importance of achieving the twin goals of enhanced security against terrorist threats and continued facilitation of the mental action of goods, capital and people'' the draft says.

From Japan, Hidehiro Konno, vice minister of economy, trade and industry for international affairs, is attending the meeting upon behalf of the trade minister, Takeo Hiranuma.

APEC consists of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, novel Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Peru Russia, Singapore, southern Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the U and Vietnam.

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