Reply #58: WTO's Boeing ruling could fuel subsidy debate, make settlement more difficult [View All]

[Demeter]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2012903753_boeingwto16.html

In a preliminary ruling Wednesday by the World Trade Organization (WTO), Boeing was found guilty of receiving illegal government subsidies. But according to people briefed on the report, the subsidies deemed impermissible appear to be just a fraction of the $24 billion the European Union had alleged — and far smaller than the aid to rival Airbus that the WTO has ruled improper.

If that interpretation is confirmed when the still-confidential ruling is made public, the outcome could be a major setback for the EU's claim that subsidies to Airbus and to Boeing are roughly in balance.

That may make a negotiated settlement of the long-running subsidy dispute even more difficult, and could further fuel the already contentious debate over which company should win the huge Air Force contract for refueling tankers.

The WTO, the Geneva-based international body responsible for policing global trade rules, said in its interim finding that Boeing has received "in excess of $5 billion in illegal subsidies," according to a trade official familiar with the report who spoke on condition of anonymity.