11.   The U.S. and Japan will probably hold auto talks at about the same time.

12.   U.S. and Japanese officials opened a final set of auto trade talks, with little sign of progress toward heading off American sanctions on Japanese cars.

13.   While the auto talks were brought back to life, negotiations foundered on another point of trade friction between the U.S. and Japan.

14.   Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, however, reacted more mildly, saying such espionage would not have adversely affected the outcome of the auto talks in Geneva.

15.   Pessimism about U.S.-Japan auto trade talks, as well as persistent concerns about selling by domestic life insurers, pushed stock prices lower, stock traders said.

16.   As government positions have stiffened on the two sides, some analysts have predicted that a breakthrough in the auto talks would depend on action by private automakers.

17.   As the next stage of the auto talks, a technical meeting will be held in Tokyo in the first half of February, Tsutsumi said.

18.   Auto trade talks between the two countries are expected to resume later this month after being stalled over the issue of numerical trade targets.

19.   But analysts saw a glimmer of hope in the settlement the United States and Japan reached in auto trade talks.

20.   But the issue was effectively removed from the summit agenda by a decision last week to restart stalled auto talks later this month at a lower level.