More nations protest U.S. trade law

GENEVA -- Canada and Mexico on Monday joined countries asking the World Trade Organization to rule on the legality of a U.S. law that passes on to American companies fines levied on foreign firms. \nTen countries, plus the 15-nation European Union, are now involved in a case against the so-called "Byrd amendment," making it the largest dispute in WTO history in terms of countries involved. \nThe WTO agreed to Canada's and Mexico's requests for dispute settlement panels to be set up, and ordered that their cases should be considered by the same panel looking at the other complainants' cases. \nUnder the Byrd amendment, enacted last year, tens of millions of dollars in fines collected by the U.S. government will be handed over to companies that lodge complaints against foreign exporters judged to be "dumping" products at artificially low prices. \nThe complainants contend that the law punishes exporters twice — first they are fined and then those fines are handed to their U.S. competitors. \nThey say the U.S. rules allow the money to be used for a wide range of purposes, including purchase of equipment, research, training, health care and pension benefits. \nSen. Robert Byrd, the West Virginia Democrat who sponsored the legislation, has said money does not change hands if foreign trading partners play by the rules and described it as "a case of justice." \nThe panel has six months to make its ruling. \nAlso Monday, the WTO agreed to set up panels on three complaints by the European Union about duties levied on imports of steel. \nThe three cases cover a total of 15 antidumping rulings by the Department of Commerce. Most concern imports from former nationalized steel companies that the United States claims are still benefiting from government subsidies. \nA WTO panel last year ruled in a similar case that Washington was wrong to impose extra duties on the company that took over from British Steel when it was privatized. It said the company had paid the market price for British Steel's assets.