Trade reform that puts poor countries first is desperately needed in the face of rising food and fuel prices and global economic insecurity. But current offers at the World Trade Organization (WTO) would make the situation worse and undermine development, warned international agency Oxfam today at the beginning of a week of talks in Geneva."Now more than ever, poor countries need a fair trade deal. Rising food and fuel prices are hitting the poorest hardest and undoing progress on poverty reduction," said Jeremy Hobbs, Executive Director of Oxfam International. "However, locking in lower tariffs will not solve the crisis but will expose poor farmers to more shocks, especially if the US and EU make only cosmetic reforms to their unfair subsidies. High prices are an opportunity for reform, but this looks set to be squandered." Read more >>