S. Arabia formally joins WTO

Published December 12, 2005

GENEVA, Dec 11: Saudi Arabia formally joined the World Trade Organisation on Sunday, bringing the global body’s membership to 149 just two days before a key summit in Hong Kong. The Middle East kingdom was admitted to the WTO by its then-148 member governments in Nov 11, capping more than a decade of negotiations, and the move came into force one month later.

WTO head Pascal Lamy has hailed the acceptance of another heavyweight of world trade into the organisation, which sets the rules for global commerce.

—AFP

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