EU Cranks Up Heat in Aerospace Spat

The World Trade Organization spat between the European Union and United States over aerospace manufacturing subsidies shows no signs of hitting the brakes.

The EU announced today that it would request permission from the WTO to levy sanctions of as much as $12 billion annually against the U.S. in light of Europe's claims that Boeing (NYS: BA) has received unfair subsidies from the American government. While the WTO ruled in March that Boeing had received at least $5 billion in such funding in violation of international trade regulations, the U.S. said Monday that it had ceased the inappropriate subsidies.

The EU isn't satisfied, saying the U.S. has "not lived up to its obligation to remove its illegal subsidies in the aircraft sector."

This latest development comes after the U.S. petitioned the WTO for the right to levy up to $10 billion in sanctions against EU support of Boeing competitor Airbus. The sides have been squabbling at the WTO for seven years.

Boeing's stock didn't react considerably on the news as it inched lower by half a percentage point in early trading.

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