The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has this week ruled that the European Union's import tariffs for bananas break global commerce rules, dismissing an appeal by the bloc.

The decision confirms the verdict reached by the WTO's dispute settlement panel in April, which ruled that duties should be brought in line with global trade agreements, following complaints by Ecuador and the US that current tariffs unfairly favoured African-Caribbean-Pacific (ACP) countries.

Latin American countries are currently subject to a tariff of €176 on bananas exported to the European Union, while former European colonies in ACP regions can export bananas tariff-free.

The EU had offered to lower tariffs on Latin American bananas at the Doha round of WTO talks in Geneva during July, but the deal fell through amid the wider collapse of the negotiations.

WTO members could reconvene in December to attempt to settle the long-running trade talks, which began in 2001. 'The EU considers the Doha round to be the right forum for resolution, and we are ready to take up the negotiations on a deal on bananas with all suppliers where they were left in July,' said EU Commission spokesman Peter Power in a statement.

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