LA MALBAIE, Canada: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Saturday that G7 leaders had agreed on the wording of a common statement at their ongoing summit which would include a commitment to a "rules-based" trade framework. "On the issue of trade, we have been able to agree on important questions to us," she added, stressing that it was "important to have a commitment to rules-based trade." Merkel acknowledged, however, that major differences remained between the US and its partners in the group which includes the world's seven most industrialized economies. The differences in opinion have not been taken off the table." American President Donald Trump has said the WTO has been a "disaster" and "very unfair" towards the United States.

Source: Bangkok Post June 09, 2018 17:37 UTC