The World : Canada OKs U.S. Sanctions

Canadian Trade Minister John Crosbie announced new trade sanctions against the United States in retaliation for a U.S. oil import tax that has been ruled discriminatory under world trade guidelines. Crosbie said in a statement that Canada has lost patience with U.S. failure to comply with a 1987 ruling by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade that the so-called Superfund oil tax--a charge imposed to help pay for U.S. environmental protection--violates world trade rules. The tax adds $8.37 million a year to the cost of oil imported from Canada. The Canadian move came two days after U.S. Trade Representative Carla Anderson Hills said the United States will retaliate against regulations that protect Canada’s West Coast herring- and salmon-processing industry.