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A Kick at the Traces. With other European fiber makers increasingly invading the Dutch market, A.K.U. is fighting harder than ever to expand abroad. The company recently set up a new subsidiary to manufacture nylon in Northern Ireland and is eagerly eying the prospects for growth within the Common Market. Long a contented party to cartel arrangements in Europe, A.K.U. insists that some of its traditional market-splitting agreements with other Continental textile manufacturers are still necessary. But with growing competitive confidence, the company shows signs of being ready to kick over at least some of the cartel traces. Recently A.K.U. directors were informed that Rhône-Poulenc, which has long held a near-monopoly of the French artificial fiber market, expected foreign producers to refrain from selling in France despite Common Market tariff cuts. Exploded one top A.K.U. executive: "I don't give a damn what they expect."
* No. 1: the U.S.'s Du Pont, which, exclusive of foreign affiliates, last year grossed $2.2 billion.