Mexican sugar tariff may end

MEXICO CITY, March 31 (UPI) -- The World Trade Organization could force Mexico to eliminate a tax on imported corn-based sweeteners, El Universal reported Thursday.

The WTO may rule next month on the U.S. challenge to Mexico's 20 percent tax on soft drinks that use high-fructose corn syrup, according to Audrae Erickson, president of the Corn Refiners Association.

The tax, imposed in 2002, nearly cut off sales to Mexico by U.S. makers of the sweetener, including Archer Daniels Midland Co. and Cargill Inc. U.S. exports were reduced by $944 million in 2004.

The tax, aimed at forcing U.S. bottlers to use Mexico's sugar, is set to expire in 2008 under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Since 1997, when Mexico imposed an antidumping duty on the sweetener, the U.S. corn industry has lost US3 billion in sales, equivalent to 672 million bushels of corn, Erickson said.

The Corn Refiners Association, based in Washington, has seven member companies, including Archer Daniels and Cargill, the two largest U.S. makers of high-fructose corn syrup.

There is a "high probability of a solution in the near term," Erickson said.