Trade talks are on track: WTO official

Top trade powers are still fighting hard for a global free trade deal this year, with the latest missed deadline seen as a major blow but not a disaster, a senior World Trade Organisation official said on Thursday.

‘‘Having missed the April 30 deadline, we have certainly had a disappointment but not a disaster,’’ said Stuart Harbinson, special adviser to WTO head Pascal Lamy.

‘‘This is a postponement, not a cancellation. The Doha Development Agenda is alive and kicking. The ingredients of a major deal are still there,” said Harbinson