GENEVA, July 25: Despair turned to hope at WTO talks on Friday as an apparent breakthrough in deadlocked negotiations raised the possibility of a new global free-trade pact being agreed after seven years of stalemate.

Ministers from 35 leading economies have been meeting here all week to discuss reductions in subsidies and import tariffs with the aim of mapping out a new deal to bring down barriers to international trade.

After more than four days of nearly fruitless talks and gathering gloom, a source told AFP that key nations the United States, the European Union, Japan, India, Brazil, Australia and China had finally found common ground.

“There has been a breakthrough in negotiations,” a diplomatic source told AFP. A spokesman for the World Trade Organisation head Pascal Lamy confirmed “very encouraging signs” from the talks.

European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson left the WTO headquarters saying “there has been progress made” but cautioned that it was “not a final deal.”

Whatever the leading seven nations have agreed -- no details have been given so far -- will now be proposed to a wider group of 35 ministers from other nations that are involved in the talks here.

Any final deal approved by these countries would then have to be cleared by all 153 WTO member states. A new pact can only be adopted with unanimity.

The Doha trade liberalisation round was launched in the Qatari capital seven years ago with the aim of helping poor countries enjoy the fruits of freer global trade.

But the process has been delayed by disputes between the rich developed world and poorer developing nations.

The two sides had settled into a familiar pattern of demanding concessions from each other and refusing to budge until new offers had been put forward.

Such brinkmanship has led to the collapse of talks on several occasions since the round began in November 2001.Lamy had warned earlier on Friday that the talks faced collapse unless countries showed flexibility and a determination to agree a pact.

Diplomats and negotiators had said that Friday would be make-or-break at the end of gruelling week of bargaining that had produced scant evidence of progress.—AFP