HONG KONG,
Dec. 14--Trade ministers struggled Wednesday to make progress towards a new pact to boost global commerce and faced an immediate challenge from African cotton farmers demanding a deal to cut subsidies, AFP reported.
Ministers from the 149 members of the World Trade Organization are trying to bridge long-standing differences on trade in farm products, industrial goods and services.
The likelihood of a major breakthrough is slim because of deep-seated differences between the European Union and the United States, and between developed and developing countries, over farm trade and market access.
In a sign of potential trouble, Africa’s near destitute cotton producers warned they would refuse to endorse any consensus if rich countries failed to commit themselves to reducing cotton subsidies.
“We came here to get concrete results, not to hear more proposals that will never be respected,“ Ibrahim Malloum, head of the African Cotton Producers Association, told reporters.
The African cotton producers, angry at the continued heavy subsidies paid to farmers in the developed world, especially in the United States, were a major factor in the collapse of the 2003 WTO meeting in Cancun, Mexico.
Malloum said he did not want to see a repeat in Hong Kong but “if we don’t get a concrete result, Africa will not be able to go along with a consensus.“
“We should not leave without setting a date--early next year--to come together again to break the deadlock so our negotiators can complete the work by the end of 2006,“ said US Trade Representative Rob Portman.
EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson reiterated that Europe would offer no bigger concessions on agriculture subsidies and tariffs, putting pressure on its trading partners to move first.
“We need much, much more on the table,“ he said, seeking reciprocal proposals to open up market access for the developed world’s industrial goods and services to match the EU’s offer on farm products.
The EU and US also exchanged barbs over another irritantÐfood aid reform, with an EU official telling reporters, “Food aid policies are being exploited for commercial interest.“
The US was quick to reply. “The fact of the matter is that the European Union does some very good work in development but in terms of food assistance, they’re missing in action,“ said a US official.

WASHINGTON,
Dec. 14-- Debt-relief campaigners complained Tuesday that some of the world’s poorest countries could be left waiting indefinitely for much-needed funds under a plan by the IMF to carry out another review of economic policies.
The Jubilee campaign group said at least six countries already promised cancellation of their debts by the International Monetary Fund will be kept waiting because of further checks demanded by the IMF.
Jubilee USA coordinator Debi Kar identified the six as Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mauritania, Nicaragua, Rwanda and Senegal.
“We’re really concerned about this as that’s fully one-third of the countries that the G8 had promised would get debt relief immediately,“ Kar told AFP.
“Our big concern is if they don’t receive the debt cancellation as promised on January 1, when will they receive it? They’ve already had to wait years.“
IMF directors are due to meet on December 21 to discuss how to proceed with a plan, first conceived by the Group of Eight powers in July, to annul the crippling debts of the 40 poorest countries.
About $38 billion of the total promised as debt relief by the G8 powers--which now stands at $56 billion--is owed to the World Bank. The rest is owed to the IMF and the African Development Bank.
Among the 40 beneficiary countries, 18 were identified by the G8 as first in line to receive relief after they successfully completed a World Bank-IMF review called the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative.
But the IMF argues that many of the countries attained HIPC status years ago, and so one more “spot check“ is required to see if they are sticking to macroeconomic policies that will ensure the money is spent wisely.
“However, we are not setting a new higher hurdle here,“ Mark Allen, director of the IMF’s policy development and review department, said last week.
“What we are doing is checking that the situation as of the (HIPC) completion point remains, broadly speaking, the situation still faced by those countries,“ he said.
But Kar said the IMF was in fact raising extra obstacles that could block debt relief for at least the six countries identified by Jubilee USA.

People walk past a labor office in the eastern German town of Weisswasser. (Reuters File Photo)

WASHINGTON, Dec. 14--Prospects for job growth in early 2006 are strong in India, New Zealand, Taiwan, United States and Australia, but weak in most of Europe, a global survey showed Tuesday, AFP reported.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey showed hiring expectations for Sweden and France in the first quarter of 2006 were the weakest since the survey began in these countries in the third quarter of 2003.
The survey by the employment consulting and recruitment group showed 19 of 23 countries surveyed reported positive hiring outlooks for the quarter ahead. But 11 of 23 were weaker compared to last year at this time and most of the lower outlooks are from European employers.
Manpower, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, said its quarterly report is “the most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world,“ based on data from more than 45,000 employers worldwide.
“First-quarter hiring across the European labor markets we survey is typically soft, but this year it appears more pervasive, with only UK employers looking to accelerate hiring from the fourth quarter,“ said Jeffrey Joerres, chairman and chief executive of Manpower Inc.
“A number of labor markets in this region are currently experiencing challenging political, social and economic conditions and this is clearly having an impact on businesses’ willingness and/or ability to add to their work forces. For now, at least, companies are going to continue to be cautious.“
Among the 12 countries surveyed in Europe, employment prospects were strongest in Britain, Ireland, Norway, Belgium and Spain.
But hiring in Asia Pacific remains strong, according to the survey.
Positive outlooks come from companies in India, New Zealand, Taiwan, Australia, Hong Kong, China and Japan.
“Hiring expectations in India continue to be strongest in the finance/insurance/real estate and services industry sectors,“ said Joerres.
“However, Indian employers are decidedly more uncertain about hiring as the data shows a 14 percent increase from fourth quarter in the number employers who don’t know whether they’ll add employees during the next three months.“
Japanese employers reported their strongest first quarter outlook since the survey began, he added.

An artist's impression shows a Boeing 787-8 in Qantas livery in this handout from the airline on Dec. 14. (Reuters Photo)

SYDNEY, Australia, Dec. 14--Boeing Co. won a $10 billion order from Qantas Airways Ltd. to deliver 65 Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets, with an option for a further 50 planes, dealing a blow to rival Airbus, Reuters reported.
The decision by the Australian carrier comes amid a record year in aircraft orders for Boeing and Airbus, which is 80 percent owned by European Aerospace Defense & Space Co. and 20 percent by Britain’s BAE Systems Plc.
Qantas, the world’s eighth-biggest passenger airline by market value, said it ordered 45 twin-aisled B787 jets with options for a further 20. The value of the 65 B787s was A$13 billion ($10 billion) at list price, Qantas said, adding it also took out purchase rights for an extra 50 B787 aircraft.
“We regard the firm orders and the options as basically a done deal,“ Qantas Chief Executive Geoff Dixon told reporters, referring to the first batch of 65 planes.
He said the B787--to have its first test flight in 2007 --was chosen because of the price of the aircraft as well as the technology, fuel efficiency and the distance a B787 would fly.

MOSCOW, Dec. 14--Russian energy giant Gazprom threatened Tuesday to cut gas supplies to Ukraine if Kiev continues to refuse new terms for gas deliveries offered by the Russian company, the RIA-Novosti news agency reported.
“If a contract on delivery of Russian gas to Ukraine is not signed by January 1, 2006, then Gazprom will not have any reason to deliver gas to Ukraine,“ said the chairman of Gazprom, Alexei Miller.
“A compromise is certainly possible and it is known to the Ukrainian side--it is the issue of a gas transport consortium,“ Miller said, adding that in Belarus, where “the gas pipeline is fully in Gazprom’s ownership and the land underneath it is in long-term lease,“ it was possible “to find a balance of interests“.
“Nothing prevents Ukraine from signing a transit contract, but it does not want to do it. And we agree with European analysts that this is a form of blackmail, because our European clients’ energy security is tied with conditions for Russian gas supplies to Ukraine,“ Miller said.
Gazprom previously warned that the dispute with Kiev could threaten supplies of gas to Ukraine’s European neighbors to the west because the country is the main transit route for such supplies.
Miller on Thursday said supplies to Europe were secure, but that if Ukraine chose to unlawfully take supplies from those intended for transit to Europe then the total amount sent to Ukraine would be reduced accordingly, RIA-Novosti reported.
Ukraine currently receives cut-price gas for its own use in exchange for allowing gas to transit its territory to Europe. But Gazprom has insisted on raising the price it charges Ukraine to what it considers an international market rate--$160 (136 euros) per 1,000 cubic meters (35,000 cubic feet).

WASHINGTON, Dec. 14--Microsoft and telecom group MCI announced a partnership Tuesday for Internet telephony allowing low-cost global calling around the world, AFP reported.
The companies are the latest to enter the market for personal computers. Those in the market include Skype, recently purchased by eBay, along with Google and Yahoo.
The new service will be available through Windows Live Messenger, the upcoming successor to MSN Messenger, the instant messaging service which has more than 185 million active accounts around the world, MCI and Microsoft said in a joint statement.
MCI and Microsoft are testing the service in the United States, and expect to deliver the PC-to-phone calling capabilities to France, Germany, Spain and the Britain in the coming weeks.
Subscribers will be able to place calls to and from more than 220 countries with rates starting at 2.3 cents per minute to the US, Canada, Britain and Western Europe during the beta testing period.
“Our new Windows Live PC-to-phone voice feature requires a partner that shares our vision for connecting people globally,“ said Blake Irving, corporate vice president of the MSN Communication Services.
“We are thrilled to work with a proven global technology provider like MCI to provide the bridge between PCs and phones with high-quality voice services that enable people to communicate more easily, conveniently and inexpensively. Our customers are going to love this.“
Patty Proferes, senior vice president at MCI, added, “This is a terrific example of the expanded MCI and Microsoft strategic relationship as the two companies continue to develop and deliver next-generation services for our customers.“

PARIS, Dec. 14--France selected on Wednesday companies from France, Spain and Australia to run motorway operators in a privatization raising 14.8 billion euros ($18.0 billion) for strained public finances, AFP reported.
The French group Vinci, the Spanish group Abertis and the Franco-Australian Eiffage-Macquarie have been chosen to acquire majority stakes in three of the companies that manage France’s highways.
Vinci will take control of Autoroutes du Sud de la France (ASF), Abertis will acquire the Societe des Autoroutes du Nord et de l’Est de la France (Sanef) and Eiffage will take over Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhone (APRR).
Provisional share prices were set at 50 euros for ASF, 58 euros for Sanef and 61 euros for APRR.
The finance ministry said that the government would hand over its shares in the three companies in early 2006.
“This process has allowed us to get the best value out of our public assets, in excellent conditions,“ the ministry said in a statement.
“The buyers chosen were those whose offers appeared the strongest based on a multi-criteria analysis in line with our specifications,“ it added.
Struggling with heavy debt, the government decided this year to privatize the last three motorway companies in which it still had a stake.
The privatization has proved highly controversialÑwith critics accusing the government of selling off the country’s assets on the cheap.