Perhaps it is the astonishing complexity of trade negotiations such as the "Doha round", the latest iteration of which will occupy several dozen trade ministers in Geneva this weekend, that makes the subject so susceptible to myth and legend. As a public service I present below, in a convenient cut-out and keep form, the current top five myths on the trade negotiations circuit:

1. "Ghana is allowed to sell raw cocoa beans to the European Union, but if it exports finished chocolate it gets hit by big tariffs."