control over virtually all areas of national manufacturing, agriculture and the service economy.
             "The WTO... is a system whose core purpose - from its inception in the aftermath of at the end of the Second World War - was the avoidance of global conflict and the promotion of peace. Peace through rules, peace through international cooperation, and peace though widening circles of prosperity", claimed Thai WTO Director-General Supachai Panitchpakdi (Why Cancun Matters, 26 November 2002, Second International Conference on Globalisation, Leuven)
             It is member-driven with decisions reached by consensus among the current 147 member countries. The Ministerial Conference, being the topmost decision-making body of the WTO, meets at least once every two years and can take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements. However, the fifth ministerial conference held at Cancún in September 2003 ended in failure finally because of the long-established rift between the developed and developing countries.
             This paper first of all discusses this round of negotiations in details, particularly regarding the disputes between the respective parties and then examines the impact of its failure upon the globalization strategies of multi-national enterprises in the next decade.
             This round of negotiations was held from 10 to 14 September 2003 and was the Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference since the WTO was created. As stated in the website of the WTO, the Cancún meeting's special task is to 'take stock of progress in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations, provide any necessary political guidance and take decisions as necessary.' This is spelt out in the declaration (paragraph 45) that ministers issued at the previous ministerial conference in Doha, Qatar in November 2001. Besides, ministers also examined progress in other areas of the Doha work program, including 'implementation' issues an...