The United States is committed to a WTO deal to transform global commerce even if power in Washington is now split following this week's election, Trade Representative Susan Schwab said Thursday.

"There is a long tradition in the US of presidents reaching across the aisle to work with Congress on trade issues," she wrote in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece in the wake of Tuesday's Democratic triumph in Congress.

"President George W. Bush is committed to the Doha Round, and I look forward to continuing to work with members of both parties to win support for an agreement that will spur development and alleviate poverty through new trade flows in agriculture, manufactured goods and services," Schwab added.

"The real question now is whether other members of the World Trade Organisation can agree to lower trade barriers

enough to foster new trade flows that will promote competition and economic growth."

The Doha Round on dismantling global trade barriers has been deadlocked since July, owing most notably to bitter rows between the United States, the European Union and developing countries over agricultural subsidies.

For EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, there is a "brief window of opportunity" to revive the Doha talks after the US elections, his spokesman said Wednesday in Brussels.

But analysts warned that with the US Congress now under Democratic control, protectionist voices could find new influence or that the party will, at least, demand extra protections on labour standards, the environment and human rights.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said Thursday: "From the aspect of Indonesia-US trade policies, maybe like other

countries which are currently discussing free-trade areas, we are very worried."

Several Democrats rode to victory in industrial bastions like Ohio by denouncing "job-killing" trade pacts that they argued had sent millions of American jobs to cheap bases such as China.

Data released Thursday showed the US trade deficit with China hit a new high of 23 billion dollars in September, more than one-third of the total US shortfall in goods and services.

Charles Rangel, a top Democrat who is in line to chair the all-powerful House Ways and Means Committee, pledged to work with Republicans to show that "expanded trade doesn't always have to mean the loss of good-paying (US) jobs".