European Community endorses plan to avert farm trade war

The European Community endorsed yesterday a tentative accord to avert a farm trade war with the United States. The accord gives the US and the EC until the end of the year to negotiate a final settlement of a dispute stemming from a tightening of Spanish restrictions on farm imports. The US had threatened retaliation.

The agreement, introduced last Wednesday, called for the EC to permit continued US shipments of corn and sorghum to Spain at 1985 levels while negotiations on a final settlement were conducted under the auspices of the Geneva-based General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. In return, the United States will withhold any retaliatory measures.