ECONOMICS REPORT - WTO Ruling on American Cotton Subsidies

ECONOMICS REPORT - WTO Ruling on American Cotton Subsidies
By Caty Weaver¹

Broadcast: Friday, May 07, 2004

This is Bob Doughty² with the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Last week, a group of three World Trade Organization officials ruled against the United States in a case brought by Brazil. They ruled that government payments to American cotton farmers violate international trade rules.

Brazil seeks to stop the United States government from providing financial assistance to American cotton farmers. The assistance permits American farmers to plant more crops and produce extra cotton. This leads to lower prices for cotton on the world market. Brazil says the United States government unfairly hurts it foreign competition as a result. The United States is the world's largest exporter of cotton.

The ruling by the W.T.O. officials was not made public. The United States and Brazil are permitted time to seek changes to the ruling before a report is released. The W.T.O. is expected to announce a final decision on the issue in June.

United States Trade Representative Robert Zoellick says the government would appeal a W.T.O. decision supporting the ruling. He says the United States will fight for its agricultural interests by negotiation³ or through legal action. The United States says its payments to farmers are permitted under W.T.O. rules.

Mister Zoellick also criticized Brazil's method of dealing⁴ with the farm assistance issue. He suggested that Brazil could have saved time and protected relations by discussing its concerns in world trade talks.

But Brazil's Ambassador to the United States Roberto Abdenur objected to the criticism. Ambassador Abdenur said Brazil was forced to seek W-T-O judgement. He says the United States and other countries are unwilling⁵ to negotiate.

The United States pays about twenty-five-thousand cotton farmers more than two-thousand-million dollars a year. It also makes payments to other farmers. Japanese and European governments also provide such support to farmers. And Brazil is not the only country angry about the issue. Several African representatives opposed farm assistance policies at a W.T.O. ministers meeting earlier this year. They argued that such policies hurt developing nations.

Experts say other countries may seek similar action against American, European or Japanese farm assistance if the W.T.O. rules against the United States on the cotton issue.

This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Caty Weaver. This is Bob Doughty.

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

3 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。