Mexico/United States: NAFTA panel gives Mexico more time to comply with corn syrup decision

摘要

Mexico city--A North American Free Trade Agreement dispute settlement panel, which ruled that Mexico must either remove or justify its high antidumping duties on U.S. high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) by November 1,2001, has granted Mexico until November 23 to describe how it will come into compliance with the panel ruling, Rafael Serrano Figueroa, secretary of the Mexican section of the NAFTA secretariat, said November 2. "The panel issued an order October 31 that gives the investigating authority inMexico until November 23" to inform the NAFTA secretariat of the measures that will be taken to comply with the panel ruling, Serrano said. The NAFTA dispute resolution panel ruled August 3 that Mexico's Economy Secretary failed to establish a threat ofinjury to the Mexican sugar industry because of HFCS imports, which are heavily used instead of sugar in Mexico's soft drink industry, the world's second largest.