There was continued government control of the types of drugs imported, but permission was given to the private sector to import multiple brands.

The import march is rattling Detroit, which has already given up 47 percent of car sales to import brands.

Mr. Shepherd said that while resistance to import brands was waning it was still present.

It has stopped its costly promotional price- cutting on electronics because of the difficulty in competing with discounters and has instead concentrated on apparel - it has long imported lesser-known brands - home furnishings and "more lucrative soft goods," Mr. Farkas said.

GM Europe's economic success cannot depend solely on importing American brands and American strategies.

Stuart Alexander is an Australian-based international marketing and importing company, known for importing and marketing such brands as Werther's Original chocolates, and Mentos breath mints.

Bricklin wanted to import additional brands, and international dealmaker Armand Hammer had been asked by the Yugoslavs to identify business areas in which they could generate exports to bolster their economy.

Later Qvale further diversified his business interests by importing non-British brands including Volkswagen, Porsche, De Tomaso, Maserati and Lamborghini.

General Motors and the Ford Motor Company continued to lose ground to import brands last month, despite heavy levels of incentive spending, according to sales results released Wednesday.

Auto Sales Rose 2.2% Last Month Auto sales rose 2.2 percent in October, to a strong seasonally adjusted sales rate of 16.9 million cars and trucks, but General Motors and Ford Motor continued to lose ground to import brands.