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The US Postal Service has misused its inspection authority to coerce shippers into shifting from rival carriers, alleged Federal Express. The company has complained that postal inspectors have harassed customers, charges that were also made by Airborne Express which says it has similar reports from its customers. A Postal Service official denied the charges that postal inspections are made to pressure shippers to change carriers rather than to enforce the Private Express Statutes that grant a monopoly to the agency for first class letters.

Airbus Industrie Pres Jean Pierson criticized the US for allowing their aircraft industry tax incentive privileges at the expense of European aircraft manufacturers. Pierson, calling the export credit arrangement 'discriminatory and unfair,' threatened to initiate a similar credit system for Europe. US industry officials denied the allegations of unfair competition, explaining that the Foreign Sales Corporation program is not only limited to the aircraft industry but to all US exporters.

Mexico's Secretariat of State for Commerce and Development (Secofi) has decided to maintain unfair trade penalties of 28.2% and 28.7% on hot-rolled steel and 12.8% on cold-rolled steel exported by US steelmakers. Secofi's decision, which was published in the Diario Oficial, excluded Inland Steel Co. and AK Steel from the penalties. However, fines imported on National Steel Corp. and LTV Steel Co. remained.

The Mexican government has decided to impose stiff penalties against Japanese sulfuric acid and Brazilian polybutidiene styrene exports following an unfair trade investigation. In decisions published in the Mexican federal register, Japanese sulfuric acid was hit with duties of 91.10% while Brazilian SBR was penalized with duties ranging from 71.4% and 96.3%.

European airlines Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Scandinavian Airlines System and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines appear to have lost in their bid to block the French government from doling out $1 billion for ailing Air France. The airlines had asked the EC to suspend the handout since Air France has used state aid to dump ticket prices in Europe. The EC responded that it would be difficult to prove that the French carrier deliberately and consistently used state aid for predatory pricing.

US-based steelmakers including Bethlehem Steel Corp., Lukens Steel Co. and Geneva Steel Corp. are fighting Mexican trade penalties before dispute-resolution panels established under Chapter 19 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The companies chose not to ask for administrative review options by Mexico's commerce agency and decided to present their sides before the panels instead. The NAFTA panels have previously ruled in favor of the steel companies in similar cases..

Mexican commerce officials have cleared US and Canadian wheat exporters of charges that they received subsidies. The move came after the US and Canada started dismantling their assistance programs for wheat exporters. However, officials found Chaparral Steel Co. guilty of price discrimination, and imposed a 6.73% compensatory duty on its exports of corrugated rods used for reinforcing concrete.

The US is preparing transshipment charges against China for its textile and apparel product exports. A meeting has been scheduled for Chinese and US officials to examine evidence of potential Chinese violations of quota restrictions. Washington has already accused China of a similar violation in May 1996, as the Asian giant transshipped 632,000 dozen cotton underwear garments through Hong Kong before they reached US shores.

The World Trade Organization's Textiles Monitoring Body (TMB) has ruled that the US' claim that category 440 imports from Hong Kong are damaging US industry is not justified and should immediately be dropped. Category 440 involves wool shirts and blouses. The TMB ruling pointed out that Hong Kong exports under the complaint were already under restraint under a group limit previously implemented by the US.

Washington Insurance Commissioner Deborah Senn has issued an order suspending the license of Spokane County Title Insurance Co. (Spokane County) for its extremely low escrow rates. Senn has accused the company of using a flat $200 escrow rate as a loss-leader to attract customers, thus posing unfair competition to rival carriers. Spokane County Pres. John Schreiner denied Senn's allegations and stated that the company will exhaust all legal means to reverse the suspension order.

The Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports, an organization of US lumber producers, has begun a drive to raise $2.5 million to fund litigation proceedings against Canada for its unfair trade practices. The fund drive is part of the organization's efforts to pressure Canada to stop subsidizing its lumber sector, a practice which they claim underprices US competitors. The coalition's action comes as US and Canadian officials began discussions on the dispute.

The French government has initiated an investigation into France Telecom in response to growing complaints regarding the state-owned telephone firm's international routing practices. Private operators allege that France Telecom charges them substantially higher rates for the use of its infrastructure. France Telecom has denied the allegations and stressed that it operates with due regard to fair competition rules.

French wine exporters are planning to file a case against Canadian wine producers with the World Trade Organization. French exporters claim that Canadian producers use unfair competition and do not follow rules on geographic origin. An official of the French Federation for Wine and Alcohol Exporters claimed that under the 1994 international agreement on origins, only French producers can use names associated with wines produced in France, names such as Cognac, Bordeaux and Burgundy.

The Secretaria de Comercio y Fomento Industrial (Secofi) has cleared US fuel-pump exports from an unfair trade practices complaint forwarded by Dinamica Automotriz de Mexico. Commerce officials explained that Dinamica was unable to present solid examples for the calculation of the margin of discrimination in prices as required under the country's Foreign Commerce Law. The decision demonstrates Secofi's strict requirement for sufficient documentation in forwarding an unfair trade complaint.

Caltex Enterprises Inc. has pleaded guilty to charges of aiding and abetting the undervaluation of imported merchandise. The company is a subsidiary of China National Textiles Import and Export Corp., a Chinese government-owned firm. The case stems from the importation of 4, 000-dozen sweat shirts which were undervalued by $48,000, and is part of the US government's effort to halt illegal transshipments of textiles and apparel.

The conflict between Jamaica and Canada over apparel is expected to end with Jamaica's withdrawal of its application for international arbitration. Earlier, bilateral discussions between officials of the two nations succeeded in resolving the trade dispute. The conflict stemmed from Jamaica's allegation that Canada is restricting access for Jamaican women's underwear. According to Canada, imports from the Caribbean island were hampering its own underwear industry.

Top agricultural industry officials of Brazil and Argentina are set to hold talks concerning Canadian wheat imports. Brazil will study a request for action made by the Argentine government regarding allegedly subsidized wheat imports from Canada. Argentina, which is traditionally Brazil's top supplier of imported wheat, is denouncing what it describes as unfair Canadian competition in the Brazilian market.

Big American steelmakers have grown dependent on government protection from foreign competition, says Christopher Saunders. Over 250 investigations related to anti-dumping and countervailing duties have been conducted for the steel industry since 1975, the most for any industry in the US. While US steelmakers claim unfair government subsidies in other countries for their steel production, American steel has also benefitted from US government loan guarantees and special tax provisions. The Pension Benefits Guaranty Corp has also taken over $3.7 billion in pension liabilities for 150 steel companies. In the 1980s and 1990s, the big steel producers have pursued modernization and are now very efficient operations. Minimills, meanwhile, have been quick to take up new technologies and have thrived in a competitive atmosphere, making inroads on the business of integrated steel producers.

A compromise is urged to settle the growing dispute between South Korea and the US over the former's protective transportation policy. South Korea enjoys equal access to America's shipping, rail and road transportation market, an unfair advantage that has caused the Americans to threaten retaliation unless reforms are implemented before Jun 1993. The South Koreans, however, say they cannot translate their pledge to open up the market into law until 1995.