Departing U.S. Trade Representative Robert Portman has suggested that ministers of major players at trade liberalization talks of the World Trade Organization should meet despite the slim chance of clinching a deal before the April 30 deadline, Japan's trade minister said Friday.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Toshihiro Nikai discussed the prospects for the WTO negotiations during a Friday morning teleconference with Portman, in which Portman introduced his successor, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab. Portman said it will take four to eight weeks for the U.S. Congress to approve the personnel change, METI officials said.

Although WTO members are missing their self-imposed deadline for agreeing on details of tariff-cutting and other liberalization measures in farm and industrial sectors, Washington believes it would still be significant for the ministers to confirm the status quo of the negotiations, the USTR was quoted as telling Nikai.