PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release                                                                     ...............................Contact: Bob Vastine June 9, 2005                                                                       .................................. ..............(202) 289-7460 x21 CSI Chairman Norman Sorensen Calls on Developing Countries to Open Services, Explains New Negotiating Approach Shanghai - Norman Sorensen, Chairman of the Coalition of Service Industries (CSI) and President of Principal International, Inc. spoke today at the "World Trade in Services: Opening, Cooperation, Development" Forum in Shanghai on the importance of meaningful services trade liberalization in the World Trade Organization (WTO). He proposed ways to ensure successful Doha Round services negotiation. The Forum was jointly organized by China’s Ministry of Commerce and the Shanghai WTO Consultation Center, with support of CSI and other services trade associations from Europe, Asia, and Australia. "The Doha Round negotiations are the first opportunity since the end of the Uruguay Round in 1994 to lower services trade barriers on a multilateral basis across all service sectors," Sorensen said. Despite the conclusion of the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) that began the elimination of sectoral barriers, world services exports account only for 23% of all exports. "We are only at the beginning of realizing the tremendous benefits that liberalization in services trade will bring to growth, employment, and global prosperity," said Mr. Sorensen. To reap those benefits, it is important that WTO members, especially key developing countries, actively participate in Doha Round services negotiations and submit high quality offers in the run-up to the Hong Kong Ministerial in December 2005. "It is time to broaden the group of leadership countries in the WTO to include China." Mr. Sorensen said that China is in a position to encourage other developing economies to liberalize services trade and investment. He also encouraged Chinese authorities to continue their efforts to ensure China's full compliance with its WTO accession commitments. Mr. Sorensen also outlined a new negotiating approach proposed by the US service industry to facilitate WTO services negotiations. Under this approach, WTO members would undertake to make commitments in all the services sectors identified in the GATS. Those commitments should at least capture current levels of liberalization. Negotiations could then focus on bringing offers up to a level of liberalization comparable to that reflected in the schedules of countries that have done the most to open their service sectors. PDF Version