That meeting of ministers would agree the big political numbers in the WTO's much-delayed Doha round, launched in late 2001 to boost the world economy and help poor countries grow.

The revised text, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters, made no significant changes to the proposed headline cuts in tariffs and subsidies to be eventually agreed by ministers.

New Zealand's WTO ambassador Crawford Falconer, who chairs the farm negotiations, said he had tidied up the text to remove alternatives, or square brackets, reflecting areas where the past three months' talks had yielded agreement or convergence.

"I have tended to go for the classic square brackets in cases where there are what I would call the real 'hot spots' left in the negotiation. In fact, there are now relatively few left," he said in a covering letter.

TRADE-OFFS IN TRADE

Falconer called for WTO delegates to discuss the revised text from May 26.

Those discussions, and similar talks on a revised text for industrial goods, would then lead to talks by senior officials who would make trade-offs between agriculture and industry.

That in turn would lead to ministers agreeing the outlines of a deal, which the WTO's 152 members have agreed should be concluded by the end of this year to further delays as the United States changes administration.

The key trade-off would involve the United States cutting its farm subsidies and the European Union cutting farm tariffs, while developing countries reduce industrial tariffs.

French Agriculture Minister Michel Barnier said he was "not reassured" by the new text and many EU countries remained concerned that the EU was offering too much in terms of farm concessions for little gain elsewhere in the negotiations.

"What I sense today is that the conditions are not there for a balanced agreement," Barnier said after a regular meeting of EU farm ministers in Brussels.

EU trade chief Peter Mandelson has come under sustained criticism from France, Ireland and other EU countries with big farm interests for his strategy in the negotiations.

Mandelson told Reuters earlier on Monday before the texts were distributed that he saw the makings of a significant new deal in new proposals under discussion at the WTO.

"I think that what we have on the table already is an outline deal which is worth at least two to three times in value to the global economy what was provided by the previous Uruguay round," he said. "I think the key trade-offs are there for us to make."

Falconer's new text did not make any changes to proposed cuts in farm subsidies.

The issue has become particularly sensitive with the global food crisis, with poor countries blaming rich-country subsidies for squeezing their farmers out of the market and hurting their ability to grow enough food.

At the same time record prices for staples offer a rare opportunity for rich countries to scale back their farm support.

Falconer's text had been held up by negotiations on a range of technical issues. Some of those continue, such as the treatment of tropical products and preferential access for former European colonies in the EU.

But he expressed confidence that members could tidy up proposals on one stubborn issue. Countries rich and poor can shield certain products from the full impact of tariff cuts by declaring them politically sensitive.

In return they must let in a quota at a lower tariff, which for food exporters could be the biggest gain of the round. How the size of that quota is calculated is itself highly sensitive.

But he said members were still too far apart on waivers to tariff cuts for developing countries.

The text on industrial goods had also been expected on Monday, but diplomats said there appeared to be a technical problem with it and they might not receive it until Tuesday.