SUNS 4356 Wednesday 20 January 1999

Geneva, 19 Jan (Chakravarthi Raghavan) -- The WTO Agreement on Trade in Financial Services, concluded in December 1997  cannot now meet the deadline for entry into force by the acceptance of the protocol by all 71 countries (including the EU and its 15 members), parties to the
agreement.

So far only 23 countries have notified their ratification or acceptance, the committee on trade in financial services was advised at a meeting Tuesday.

The signatories, who have ratified or accepted within the deadline set in the protocol, 29 January, will now have to meet in February to decide on their course of action.

Those who have not accepted so far include the EC (of whose 14 members, only the Netherlands has ratified). But the EC has said it hopes to complete its acceptance by the 29 January, except for Luxembourg.

Some eleven countries have signified they would not be able to meet the deadline - because of parliamentary processes and elections or other problems, while 16 others, besides the EC, said they would meet the deadline.

Those who have conveyed their ratification or acceptance are: Bahrain, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cyprus, the Czech republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Netherlands, Hong Kong China, Iceland, India, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, Mauritius, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Singapore, Switzerland, Turkey and the United States.

Australia, Luxembourg, the Philippines, Costa Rica, Brazil, Poland, Venezuela, Uruguay, Bolivia, Honduras, the Dominican Republic told the CTFS Tuesday that they would not be able to meet the deadline.

Those who said they could meet the deadline were: Bulgaria, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Nicaragua, South Korea, the EU (except for Luxembourg), the Slovak Republic, Mexico, Thailand, Hungary, Macao, Norway, Indonesia, Malta, Romania, Seneghal and Ghana.

Some countries, like Malaysia, who have not ratified did not indicate their position.

Trade officials said that no one made any references to the financial crisis and its effects on their countries.