Business Notes TRADE

The omens were bleak from the start. As talks got under way in Brussels last week in the final round of negotiations on revising the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, 30,000 European and Japanese farmers marched through clouds of tear gas in the city center, destroying property and brandishing placards opposing cuts in agricultural subsidies. The farmers' fury helped torpedo the GATT's four-year attempt to set new guidelines for nearly $4 trillion in global commerce. The effort collapsed on Friday when the European Community refused to meet demands by the U.S. and other major food exporters to cut farm aid more than 30%.

Mindful that the failure could unleash a spiral of protectionism, delegates from the 107 participating nations consented to a cooling-off period. They will meet in Geneva early next year in a final push to salvage something from their tiring and often tempestuous talks.