HEADING FOR A CRASH

Trade conflicts between the U.S. and Japan normally follow a practiced ritual: first come the angry words, then the threat of sanctions, then more angry words, then the small gesture of reconciliation. But it seemed last week as if that ultimate stage might never be reached when the Clinton Administration slapped 100% tariffs on 13 Japanese luxury cars in the toughest trade showdown between the two countries in two decades. In unveiling the sanctions, which would double the sticker price of such models as Lexus and Acura when they take effect on June 28, Trade Representative Mickey Kantor declared that the...