Over at Opinio Juris, Roger Alford notes that the "Cash for Clunkers" program has seemed to favor non-U.S. car-makers such as Toyota and Honda over the U.S. car-makers (with the caveat that some Toyota and Honda cars are made, in part at least, in the U.S.):
consumers are showing a preference for imported cars when they purchase under the program, with Toyota (17%) and Honda (14%) leading the way. The top ten sellers under the program are Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Prius, Ford Escape, Toyota Camry, Dodge Caliber, Hyundai Elantra, Honda Fit, and Chevy Cobalt. In other words, six of the top ten sellers are foreign cars (although the Camry is built at home and abroad).
He notes that the preference for imports is fine under WTO rules because "You can favor imports, but not disfavor them."
The underlying data is here. After looking at this data, I wondered whether any country could make an MFN claim: Are there particular countries that are worse off than others under the program? I suppose what you would have to do is compare the break-down of purchases under the program with the breakdown of purchases more generally, to see whether there is a disparate impact on any particular country. Of course, a disparate impact of this sort, if it existed, is not necessarily sufficient to find a violation of GATT Article I:1. There are a number of competing views out there on how different aspects of non-discrimination standards should be applied, and the likelihood of finding a violation depends in part on which approach you take. (How big the disparate impact is may also be relevant).
