Chemical Industry Has Misgivings About Uruguay Round Trade Pact: Major concern is the lack of broad coverage—to date, too few countries are participating in the chemical tariff cuts

Yogi Berra was right when he said that "it ain't over till it's over." Negotiations in the Uruguay round of world trade talks formally ended in Geneva on Dec. 15 after more than seven years of contentious, often bitter, bargaining. But it ain't over yet, especially for the U.S. chemical industry. Even after Peter D. Sutherland, director general of the General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade (GATT), sounded the closing gavel on negotiations that have spawned the most comprehensive trade pact in GATT history, several major issues stiil remain unresolved. They may not be completely settled until mid-February, perhaps even later. One of them smacks at the very heart of the chemical industry's own trade objectives. And it is critical to the industry's continued support of the Uruguay round as the Clinton Administration tries to win Congressional approval for the trade deal. That issue is the tariff cuts on chemicals that are—or will be—prescribed in ...