ABSTRACT
In 1995, The Clinton administration extended Super 301 by Executive Order for 1996 and 1997. The administration initiated a Section 301 investigation of Japanese auto parts barriers, but, to appease the Japanese, initiated it outside of the Super 301 rubric. In 1989, the administration identified three priority countries: Japan, Brazil, and India. With regard to Japan, three sectors were identified: forest products, satellites, and supercomputers. In Brazil, the objective was the elimination of the system of import licenses on all imported products—the closest example of the vision Congress had for Super 301. In India, two sectors where protectionism was quite blatant were identified: insurance and investment. The two Super 301 cases launched against Japan in 1989 were much smaller in economic terms than the wood products case, but they involved high-technology products—supercomputers and satellites—arguably of considerable strategic importance. Insurance and investment are examples of sectors in which India maintains substantial and obvious trade barriers.
