TRADE NEWS BULLETIN Volume I Number 204 Wednesday, December 2, 1992 _________________________________________________________ GATT News Summary _________________________________________________________ FRENCH HOPE STRASBOURG PROTEST SHORES UP EC SUPPORT The French Government is hoping Tuesday's massive protest against cuts in European farm export payments will lead other EC nations to reject the EC-US agriculture agreement. In one of the largest pan-European labor demonstrations ever, thousands of European farmers and their counterparts in the United States, Canada, Japan and South Korea marched through the French city of Strasbourg yesterday to protest the cuts. The 45,000-70,000 demonstrators were generally peaceful, but an estimated $150,000 in damage was reported along the parade route. Farmers held signs and chanted slogans criticizing the efforts of the United States, Germany and Great Britain to complete the deal. A group of about 150 broke off from the main march in an attempt to reach the European Parliament building, but riot police turned back the crowd with tear gas grenades. French farm leader Luc Guyau told a crowded soccer stadium the French would not be the only farmers to suffer from the farm trade accord. "Yesterday, some farmers thought they weren't concerned by the consequences," he said. "But today they understand that no one is safe." German and European farmers' union chief Constantin Heereman told a cheering crowd, "We refuse to be sacrificed for the sole interest and profit of the United States and a few multinational corporations." The accord would slash exports of subsidized farm produce by 21 percent and reduce the amount of land used for oilseed cultivation. French Prime Minister Pierre Beregovoy said yesterday that Europe must show "solidarity to avoid sacrificing the rural world and its inhabitants." Last week, Beregovoy said France would veto any GATT deal containing an agriculture accord that is not in France's national interest. But clearly France needs the support of its neighbors. Ministers from Belgium and Italy have indicated they may be ready to back France; France is now turning to the poorer EC states of Spain, Portugal, Greece and Ireland. The agriculture dispute has been blamed for blocking the completion of wider global trade talks under the Uruguay Round of GATT. France is the world's second largest agriculture exporter after the United States. Source: William Dawkins, "Farmers Besiege Strasbourg in Protest Over Farm Deal," FINANCIAL TIMES, December 2, 1992, p. 16; Robert Reinheimer, "European Farmers Protest Against Subsidy Agreement," UPI, December 1, 1992; Christopher Burns, "France-Farmers," AP, December 1, 1992; Emmanuel Jarry, "Farmers' Anger Spills Over in GATT Protest," REUTER, December 1, 1992; Alan Riding, "Europe's Farmers Protest Trade Agreement," NEW YORK TIMES, December 2, 1992, p. A4; William Drozdiak, "40,000 Farmers From Europe, Asia Protest EC-U.S. Pact," WASHINGTON POST, December 2, 1992; Bruce Barnard, "French Farmers Sow Seeds of Dissent in Push to Block GATT," JOURNAL OF COMMERCE, December 1, 1992, p. 10A. _________________________________________________________ NEWSLETTER: AG DEAL ALLOWS HIGH EC SEED PRODUCTION The EC-U.S. agriculture deal will allow high oilseed production in the European Community, the newsletter OIL WORLD said. It claimed production of rapeseed, sunflower seed and soybeans would reach about 11 million tons in 1993 and 1994 and about 10.7 million in 1995 and 1996. "The production prospects for the next three years are thus considerably higher than feared in the EC and hoped for in the US before the agreement," the newsletter said. Source: "Oilseed Deal Less Harsh Than Thought - Oil World," REUTER, December 1, 1992. _________________________________________________________ US STEEL MANUFACTURERS URGE REJECTION OF GATT The U.S. steel industry has gathered together to reiterate its opposition to the current draft of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. A steel industry source said a network of communications to the Bush Administration, Congress and "anyone we think can influence the outcome of these talks" started up as soon as the U.S. and European Community announced a settlement to their long-running dispute over farm subsidies which was delaying negotiations in other areas. In a separate action, a group of 85 companies, trade associations and labor unions sent a letter to President-elect Bill Clinton stating their intention to oppose GATT if sections relating to unfair trade laws are not modified. "We ... urge that, if the (Uruguay) Round is still unfinished as of Jan. 20, you ask your trade representative to achieve fundamental change in, or to reject outright, the Dunkel draft's dumping law, subsidy and dispute-settlement proposals." The letter was signed by the Aluminum Association, the Copper and Brass Fabricators Council and the Steel Manufacturers Association, among others. Source: "Industry Renews Its GATT Attack," AMERICAN METAL MARKET. _________________________________________________________ NAFTA News Summary _________________________________________________________ CHICANA LABOR ORGANIZATION OPPOSES NAFTA La Mujer Obrera, a cooperative of women workers along the U.S.- Mexico border, has organized several marches of Mexican, American and Canadian workers in the past few months to show that "solidarity among workers is possible" in protesting the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The group released a statement predicting the NAFTA would turn the "terrible situation" for women workers along the border into a "disaster." La Mujer Obrera contends that NAFTA's intention is to eliminate all laws, regulations, or tariffs that corporations feel hinder their access to the workforces, natural resources and markets of the three countries. The group has called for greater research into NAFTA's effect on labor rights, the environment, and health standards. Source: "Workers Solidarity Is the Only Way to Confront NAFTA," UNIDAD Y FUERZA, November/December 1992, p. 8; LA MUJER OBRERA PRESS RELEASE, August 7, 1992. _________________________________________________________ Other Trade News Clayton Yeutter, a former U.S. Trade Representative and Agriculture Secretary will join the board of Texas Instruments Inc. Yeutter was the head of a 1986 U.S. government delegation that produced an agreement securing greater sales of U.S. semi-conductors in Japan, directly benefiting Texas Instruments. Yeutter will receive an annual salary of $40,000 plus other fees of between $5,000 and $10,000 for serving on committees. Yeutter's other corporate directorships include Conagra Inc. and the Oppenheimer Funds, and he is expected to rejoin the board of Caterpillar Inc., where he once was director. Source: Thomas C. Hayes, "Ex-Official Is Named A Director," NEW YORK TIMES, December 2, 1992, p. C4. _________________________________________________________ Other On-line Conferences: trade.strategy - a discussion of trade issues trade.library - a repository of trade information eai.news - a news summary of Latin American trade topics susag.news - a news summary of sustainable agriculture issues Produced by: Kai Mander The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303 Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA Telephone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982 E-Mail:kmander@igc.org _________________________________________________________