WTO body formally OKs U.S. sanctions against European Union in Airbus case - Los Angeles Times
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WTO body formally OKs U.S. sanctions against European Union in Airbus case

An Airbus A350-1000 conducts a test flight in France in February.
(Guillaume Souvant / AFP / Getty Images)
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The World Trade Organization has formally given the go-ahead for the United States to impose trade sanctions on up to $7.5 billion worth of European Union goods following a ruling that European plane maker Airbus received illegal subsidies.

The move by the trade body’s dispute settlement body was largely a formality after the long-awaited Oct. 2 ruling by a WTO arbitration panel. For that ruling to be blocked, every country including the United States that attended the settlement body’s meeting Monday would have had to reject it.

The record $7.5-billion ruling found that the European bloc and member states Britain, France, Germany and Spain failed to remove improper subsidies for Airbus that hindered sales by U.S. rival Boeing.

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The Trump administration plans to impose the sanctions starting Friday.

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