GENEVA (AFP) — US aerospace giant Boeing is unlikely to reach a negotiated agreement with European rival Airbus in a long-running subsidies dispute between the companies, a lawyer for Boeing said Tuesday.
The World Trade Organisation is set to rule on the Airbus case in April.
"I would be surprised that we see a negotiated settlement before the ruling against Airbus is issued," said Robert Novick, a lawyer from the Washington-based WilmerHale firm which advises Boeing in the dispute.
A fresh round of hearings began on Tuesday at the WTO headquarters on the European Union's own complaint against what it claims to be Boeing subsidies.
Both Washington and Brussels launched simultaneous cases in 2004. A ruling is expected on the Airbus case around April, with a Boeing verdict seen six months later.
The EU claimed last September that US subsidies between 2004 and 2006 to Boeing had caused Airbus to lose 27 billion dollars (19 billion euros) and were illegal under world trade rules.
The EU cases focus on research and development support it says the US Defense Department and NASA provide to Boeing, as well as support from the states of Illinois, Kansas and Washington.
Novick rejected these claims as "grossly inflated."
"The money coming from the (Defense Department) and NASA is not a subsidy but money paid for services rendered," he said.
The United States claimed in July that the overall support Airbus receives from European government loans for the launch of new models amounted to 205 billion dollars.
Both companies -- which are not official parties in the WTO dispute, since the organisation only deals with trade complaints by governments -- have said they still want to settle their dispute through negotiations.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has laid great stress on improving relations with the United States and the Boeing lawyer said this could help pave the way for an amicable settlement.
However, Novick cautioned that "we have seen no evidence of progress" so far.
"We have an interest and availability to sit down and discuss at any time a negotiated solution with Airbus," said Boeing vice-president Ted Austell.
"But a negotiated solution must be based on terms that deal with the issue of launch aid," he stressed.
Airbus and Boeing, along with the United States and European Union, have a common interest in setting a legal basis for what state aid is permissible in aircraft production at a time when China, Russia and other countries are launching their own planes, Austell added.
Boeing estimates that Airbus's share of the global civil aviation market has grown from 37 percent in 2001 to 57 percent in 2006, partly thanks to the help of subsidies.
The European manufacturer releases full year 2007 results on Wednesday.
Boeing said Tuesday these figures will show Airbus has outstripped it for the fifth year running for aircraft deliveries and the sixth year running for orders.
Boeing earlier this month announced a record 1,413 orders for 2007 and 441 deliveries.
The head of Airbus's parent company EADS last week said there was just a "small difference" between the two companies' order figures for 2007.
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