GENEVA — Negotiators from countries and regions participating in World Trade Organization talks to eliminate tariffs on information technology products agreed Saturday to expand the list of products covered, negotiation sources said.
A final deal by the Information Technology Agreement (ITA) signatories is expected on Friday to newly include some 200 products such as magnetic resonance imaging machines and video game consoles, they said.
Countries such as the United States are in favour of expanding the product list, while China and other countries have been asking for some exemptions.
WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo wrote on Twitter that he is "very optimistic that we'll have a final successful deal by the end of next week."
"We have the basis for an agreement" after the talks involving all participants, he said.
The agreement entered into force in 1997. The number of participants stands at 80, representing 97% of global trade in technology products, according to the WTO.
The US Trade Representative’s office hailed a “major breakthrough” in what would be the first significant tariff-cutting deal at the WTO in 18 years.
“This will open overseas markets for some of America’s most competitive companies and workers,” USTR Michael Froman said in an e-mailed statement.
In talks that started on July 14, members took on the question of various tariffs, notably on LCD screens, which were contested by Taiwan and China, and an EU request concerning car radios. South Korean negotiators withdrew their opposition to an extended agreement, and members agreed to consider a draft list of covered products.
Tariffs on semiconductors, magnetic resonance imaging machines, global positioning system devices, printer ink cartridges, video game consoles and other products would be cut to zero under the deal, according to the USTR office.
In September, ITA negotiators will start talks on schedules of concessions for tariff reductions, also known as staging. That allows countries to gradually phase in the tariff reductions for certain products deemed too sensitive for the ITA’s various signatories.
Negotiators will also hold technical negotiations with the goal of completing the agreement by the WTO Ministerial Conference scheduled for Dec 15-18 in Nairobi, Kenya.
US technology industry officials are hopeful the deal could enter into force as soon as July 2016.

July 19, 2015
Source: Bangkokpost