Hong Kong Sunday welcomed the World Trade Organisation's decision to hold its sixth ministerial conference in the city in December next year. "I warmly welcome the decision of the General Council of the World Trade Organisation to hold the sixth ministerial conference in Hong Kong in December 2005," Commerce Secretary John Tsang said in a statement.

The WTO's General Council first endorsed Hong Kong as a venue in October 2003, but no date was set at that time.

The world trade body Sunday salvaged global trade talks focusing on agriculture with a last ditch agreement in Geneva on a compromise to overcome a damaging rift between rich and poor countries.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2004