But they warned that much work was still needed to get full agreement on the delicately crafted proposal.
"What's on the table is not perfect, it's not beautiful but it's finally put together what will be a genuine boost for the world economy and particularly good for developing countries," European Union trade chief Peter Mandelson said.
"There is an emerging deal but not a done deal," Mandelson said after a make-or-break meeting of ministers.
The optimistic tone was a remarkable turnaround from the gloom at the WTO earlier in the day, when Director-General Pascal Lamy warned the Doha round talks were on the brink of collapse because of the refusal of countries to negotiate.
And it represented an endorsement of Lamy's strategy of restricting the talks to seven key countries to crack open the toughest issues, ranging from caps on farm subsidies to limits on special treatment for developing countries.
THE TOTAL PACKAGE
"No one is happy with every detail," Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean told reporters. "But there is acceptance in the main that as a package it's the basis for moving forward and as a package it has to be accepted in the totality, not trying to pick apart aspects of the details."
Some countries were still expressing reservations, and it was clear that a deal in the Doha round - flagged at its launch in late 2001 as a way to boost the world economy and ease poverty - was not yet done.
Indian Commerce Minister Kamal Nath, whose tough stance earlier in the week was blamed by many colleagues for the deadlock, sounded more cautious, saying: "There are certain areas of concern, there are certain areas of consensus."
U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab said ministers had reached tentative agreement on the way forward, but added:
"I think the biggest concern that we have is that a handful of large emerging markets really threaten this round for the rest of us."
