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The European Union and the United States take opposite stands in protecting their textile industry's domestic produce. EU is less a protectionist, while the US is a serious protectionist. The US imposes sanctions on countries, like China, that try to evade its quota regulation by shipping their exports through another country into the US. This transhipping activity is seen by the EU as a consequence of a US protectionist stance, and its imposition of quotas in order to restrict trade.

The Supreme Court's move declining to review a case against the Japanese paper company, Nippon Paper Industries Co Ltd, for its criminal price-fixing efforts gave the Clinton administration a much-needed boost to its drive against unfair trade practices by other countries. The US, which has had difficulty clamping down unfair trade policies, particularly in Japan, is focusing on the use of antitrust laws to penalize companies abroad. The US was able to collect $205 mil in antitrust fines in 1997 alone.

House Minority leader Richard Gephardt has proposed a bill that will give Bill Clinton power to impose economic sanctions on any country that is guilty of unfair trade practices. The bill, which was co-sponsored by Sen. Jay Rockefeller of Virginia, was introduced to hasten US-Japan trading negotiations for automotive parts, which currently faces a $6.26 billion trade deficit. Gephardt claims the bill will empower Clinton to 'reciprocate' any actions made by Japan towards the US and show that the US will not fall under all of Japan's demands.

The Clinton administration has expressed its intention to preserve a milder version of the Super 301 trade law. Officials are apprehensive that a return to the original version of Super 301, which concerns discrimination against American imports, will adversely affect relations with Asian countries that will send their leaders for a scheduled meeting in Nov. 1994. The tactful version of Super 301 focused on unfair international trade practices and not on countries that tolerate them.

Inconsistency of antitrust policies has barred Microsoft Corp from obtaining licence to sell its Windows 95 operating system with its browser, Explorer. The Department of Justice claimed that requiring consumers to buy a second product as a condition of sale is prohibited by the law, under the Sherman and Clayton Act. The computer manufacturer countered that it does not force consumers to buy the browser, since it is offered free of charge, and that the decision to buy products must be left to the discretion of consumers.

Canada's policy of banning split-run magazines is purely a restraint of trade hiding under the guise of protecting the nation's cultural identity. The magazines are versions of US publications that contain a mixture of original and Canadian content. Canada's policymakers argue that split-run magazines take away Canadian advertising dollars and drive Canadian magazines out of business. The World Trade Organization ruling on the issue clearly show that Canada can not use arguments about cultural domination just to protect their commercial interests.

The European Union's (EU) 9-year trade dispute with the US will likely continue following its rejection of a ruling made by the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding the illegality of EU's long-standing ban on imports of hormone-treated US beef. The ban will be settled by the end of 1997 and the EU, which is accusing the WTO review panel of failing to take account of scientific evidence it presented, announced that it will appeal the ruling. The EU will have to comply with the ruling or compensate the US beef farmers if it loses the appeal.

The US has complained to Japanese trade minister Shunpei Tsukahara that Japan is blocking the import of varieties of US apples while allowing the import of different apple varieties from New Zealand. Japan has also implemented a tedious inspection and regulatory system which simply serves as a non-tariff barrier. The US threatens to take the case to the World Trade Organization should Japan refuse to widen their market for US apples. Japan claims that it wants none other than the Red and Golden Delicious variety.

The US high technology industry no longer appears to be interested in the reauthorization of the Export Administration Act (EAA). This basic export control law expired in 1994 and many believe that the environment for such legislation has changed dramatically since then. Those who pushed for EEA reauthorization in the early 1990s in hopes of making significant gains are afraid that a reauthorization now would be detrimental for the industry.

The US needs to negotiate with other countries in its effort to stop bribes and corruption as part of its campaign to eliminate trade barriers. Corruption is widespread in bidding for foreign contracts or doing business in other countries, with bribery estimated to have cost US corporations $45 billion in lost income in 1995. The US has drawn up several measures to solve the problem. According to US Trade Rep. Mickey Kantor, the government is pushing for an agreement with Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development member-countries to curb bribery. It has also asked the World Trade Organization to consider corruption as a non-tariff trade barrier.

Analysts say that North Korea's removal of restrictions on imports of US goods and a ban on calling American ships will not result in radically increased shipping and business activities in the short term. They believe that North Korea's action is intended to attract more aid from organizations such as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank. North Korean officials had announced that their move was a complete fulfillment of the country's promise to the US, agreed upon as part of a fall 1994 bilateral accord which sought to end North Korea's nuclear threat.

World Trade Organization (WTO) member nations were asked to use trade sanctions as judiciously as possible. GATT head Peter Sutherland warned that the world's governments will still be pressured for protection when the World Trade Organization becomes official in Jan. 1, 1995. Sutherland presented a report on the global trading system to the 124-nation GATT contingency. The report revealed a prevalence of anti-dumping, subsidies and countervailing measures and quantitative restrictions being contested.

Canada has embarked on a massive campaign against illegal exports of wheat and barley to the US. The move is aimed at curbing the increasing number of western Canadian grain farmers who circumvent the Canadian Wheat Board and sell directly to US customers. The crackdown includes huge fines, numerous export licensing requirements and increased border inspections.

The Canadian government has rejected US proposals for a multilevel import duty on Canadian grain. The Clinton administration seeks to limit imports from Canada, in compliance with US grain farmers complaints that Canadian producers are unfairly dominating their domestic market. Canadian exports to the US are expected to rise to 5.5 million tons in 1994. The proposed duties would be levied on imports of more than 1.1 million tons, and would decrease as imports from Canada decrease.

A US official denied that the US and the EC are headed for a trade war due to the latter's imposition of restrictions on imports of hormone-treated US beef. The official was reacting to European newspaper reports that the US was mulling retaliatory measures under the US Super 301 provisions to protest the ban. The official said the EC ban cannot be questioned under Uruguay Round world trade rules, which have yet to be signed and implemented. Nevertheless, he admitted that the ban was imposed on nonscientific grounds and therefore ran contrary to trade regulations.

The US government gave notice to Japan that it would act on two complaints on trade barriers on the supercomputer and construction services industry. US Trade Rep Mickey Kantor urged the Japan to review its government procurement practices to eliminate barriers which exclude US companies from participating in Japanese projects. US laws provide trade sanctions if the two countries fail to reach a compromise. In addition, Kantor also warned developing countries that the US would start to crack down on violations of copyright laws.

A move is under way in Canada to dismantle some 500 internal trade barriers that have so far restricted the flow of goods, services, people and capital across its 10 provinces. Talks on the deregulation, which will be patterned after the 1988 Free Trade Agreement between the US and Canada, is scheduled to start on Jul 1, 1993 and end on Jun 30, 1994 with provincial ratification for Jun 1995.

The Indian government has pledged to lift or reduce restrictions on the import and export of a variety of goods. It plans to review licensing restrictions on a number of capital goods, raw materials, intermediate goods and consumer items and scrap as many items as possible. Goods that are regarded as essential for food security or strategic considerations, however, will be retained in the restricted list.

China softened trade restrictions and planned to import modern equipment in a bid to upgrade and revitalize its declining textile industry. Eleven companies of over 300 factories in Shanghai have already been allowed greater autonomy in imports and exports. Exports from these companies amounted to $358 million from Jan to Sep of 1992, an increase of 52% over 1991 figures. Meanwhile, China is preparing for an international textile machinery exhibition to be held in Beijing on Nov 1992. Through the event, which will feature equipment from the US, Japan, Taiwan and Europe, China hopes to modernize aging and obsolete machinery in the country's mills.

The Senate has failed to muster enough votes to override a Bush veto of a bill that sets conditions which China must meet to export goods to the US at normal tariff rates. The bill requires China to improve its human rights record and halt weapons sales so it can retain its Most Favored Nation status, which grants low tariffs on a country's exports to the US. Only seven more votes were needed to override the veto.

Several constitutional reform proposals made by Canada's provincial authorities are seen as hampering the establishment of a North American free trade area. Nine out of Canada's 10 provincial premiers have advanced proposals that, while ostensibly eliminating hundreds of barriers to internal free trade in a genuine common market, are providing a long list of exemptions that impede internal trade more than current legislation. However, improvements are predicted as the national government tries harder to get the premiers to ease such restrictions.