TARIFF CONCESSIONS BY U.S.

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25931, 11 October 1949, Page 5

TARIFF CONCESSIONS BY U.S.

Agreement At Annecy On World Trade MORE NEGOTIATIONS NEXT I YEAR (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) (Rec. 9 p.m.) LONDON, October 10. American tariff concessions involving about 250,000,000 ic.llars’ worth of overall imports in terms of 1948 trade were announced yesterday as part of a new pattern of world trade affecting 33 nations. These nations, with trade estimated at more than 80 per ■ent. of the world's total, worked out the new pattern in talks at Annecy, France, between April 8 and August 27. President Truman and the United States State Department are preparing for new world tariff-cutting negotiations in 1950. These negotiations to permit European and other countries to earn more dollars as well as increase world trade generally will probably be conducted in the autumn of 1950. They are regarded as a logical step after the Annecy agreements towards the United States’ policy of returning to multilateral low-tariff trading throughout the free world. The recent approval by Congress of the United States Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act, eitjpowering the President to idjust present tariffs by 50 per cent, in international negotiajons. was regarded as paving the way for new assaults on world trade barriers.

SCOPE OF TALKS AT ANNECY

Twenty-three of the nations repesented at Annecy were the original ignatories of the General Agreement n Trade and Tariffs—known as Gatt r which agreed to extensive tariff conJssions two years ago in Geneva. ’ These nations are Australia. Belgium. Jrazil. Burma. Canada. Ceylon. Chile, ;;-.:na. Cuba. Czechoslovakia. France, ndia. Lebanon, Luxembourg, the fetherlands. New Zealand, Norway, •skistan. South Africa, Southern Biodesia. Syria, Britain, and the foited States. The other ten nations are Denmark, fee Dominican Republic, Finland, Ireecf Haiti, Italy. Liberia. Nicaragua. Sweden, and Uruguay. They sought cressinn to Gatt. During the Annecy talks it was nly these 10 new nations who negc- ■ iated concessions among themselves cd with the existing members, but ■ nder Gatt all the contracting parties I rant most-favoured-nation treatment ►»each other. Thus, any tariff con-I ssion granted by one country to lother is automatically extended to [1 other members. The results of all their talks, released inultaneouslv yesterday in the. ipitals of the countries concerned, ame about 5000 items on new tariff | sts. The concessions will have to be ; pproved by the legislatures of most , entries. and alterations in the exist- i ig rates of duty will not be made bejre January 1. 1950. Some of Britain’s Imperial prefer- . ices have been affected by the i nneev Conference. All the Imperial

; preference reductions, however, only I affect British imports valued at l £4.800.000 in 1938 and British exports j valued at £50.000 in 1938. 1 The American concessions—vitally important to a dollar-hungry world— I include both reductions of some of the [ present barriers and guarantees against ' raising others. The American con- | cessions apply to specified items such I as chemicals, vegetable oils, iron and 1 steel and their products, machinery, j meat and fish products, dairy products. ' fruit and nuts, boots, shoes and other i leather goods. i Concessions granted to American 1 exports include cotton, tobacco, automotive vehicles and parts, aircraft and ! parts. industrial and agricultural machinery! metals, petroleum products, plastics, textiles, furs, rubber products, and motion picture and other photographic products. Britain, as head of the sterling bloc, has undertaken not to increase the duties on goods of which imports from all the other 32 countries were valued at £73.900.000 in 1938. Britain, in turn, is expected to benefit from concessions on exports valued in 1938 at 1 £22.000.000. A quarter of this trade is affected by the tariff reductions, and on the remainder the old tariffs will not be raised. Britain will also gain from concessions made between other countries, which automatically apply to Britain under the most-favoured-nation clause. Under this heading, some concessions are made by the United States to the 10 newly-acceding nations.

OFFICIAL COMMENT ON TALKS

In Washington, the United States Department issued a statement scribing the Annecy Conference as Bother landmark In international nmercial relations.” Explaining the United States conssions. the State Department said: hey apply to products which the riled States imported in 1948 from acceding countries to the value of 5.G64.000 dollars or 37 per cent, of e total imports from the acceding Entries in that year.” The Information Centre in London the United Nations said that the reement provided “better oppore lities for selling goods to the United ales and earning more dollars.” The statement added: “It has rerained countries from taking comply free-handed, one-sided action suit their convenience without easuring its effects on the trade of

other countries. It has brought together in a persistent atmosphere of good will and determination to succeed. a very large group of countries previously related in their trade policies mainly by individual arrangements.” Mr L. D. Wilgress. High Commissioner for Canada in London and chairman of the contracting parties to the agreement, said in a statement that the “agreement was a definite and constructive step towards bringing about conditions that would make multilateral trade again possible." In Ottawa trade officials said that Canada’s trade with the United States and Britain would not be greatly affected by the agreement. Canada welcomed the agreement as another step towards multilateral trade, but the concessions were “relatively unimportant” to Canada.

IRTISH NEWSPAPERS “CAUTIOUS”

The British press gives a cautious ilcome to the news of tariff reduc- | The Times” says: "The positive re- | ctio.ns T restrictions on trade ; ’ t about by the agreements • iched at Annecy do not in them- ' ves amount to much. The most im- [ riant achievement of the conferee has been to discourage a further ease in trade barriers. But even s is useful at a time when grow- ? difficulties might well lead to new strictions. The European countries, largely industrial competitors, i nd t< gain relatively little immedi- j ■ly .from the mutual tariff conces- | "Daily Express” features on ge one a policy for Britain “to end of scarcity” by Lord Beaver--ord Beaverbrook says: “Restric- ' ns and scarcity must not and need I t march with us always. Here is Jiitical programme which if implented could wipe out these evils. The pire comes first. It must, for withthe Empire, there is no future.” Beaverbrook wants (1) to » a system of Empire free - e . : '2» to initiate new vast Colonial 'yopment for raw materials needtor survival and economic indelaence: (3) to set up an Empire mi 1- view inter-imperial uiauon problems as an indivisible ie so that people would be availe where there was a need.

Lord Beaverbrook lists three points I for reinvigorating British industry:— (1) a minimum weekly income of £6 for every workman; (2) no limitations on dividends; <3) a reduction in taxation. He also says that the pound should be set free and the House of i Lords abolished and replaced by an I elected second chamber possessing the I same powers. i The "Daily Express” comments in a leading article that Lord BeaverI brook’s policy and the Annecy agree--1 ment do not square up. 1 “The Annecy agreement hangs on the Geneva agreement of 1947, and I the outcome is the same,” it says. “Britain’s trading strength is reduced I and the British Empire is weaker. Bri- | tain’s total trade affected by Annecy ion the 1938 value standard is ; £79.300,000. Britain’s advantage , covers trade worth £22.000.000 in 1938. America's contribution covers trade worth no more than £500.000 before the war. What sort of a bargain is that? Nearer four to one than three to one against’ the British, with America yielding nothing that matters.” The “Financial Times” comments: “The tariff achievements represent a substantial advance. Judged in the wider context of world trade the Annecy results are to be welcomed as the demonstration of a new technique. The wonder is that 23 nations have been able in the time to adapt the existing agreements among themselves and absorb 10 fresh members.”

AUSTRALIA’S NEGOTIATIONS

£n c ?~ s ; ralian Minister of Post-war d that 10 }! 011 J* J- Dedman) - • -ai the New York representaIHp - Australian Government nt w to sign the agreetie added that bills putting into uH l • Australian concessions rl Intr °duced into the new Ip^ nt ncxt year - added that Australia’s trade with ip?‘ veden - Denmark. Finland, and j D ip f - Was sufficient to warrant the thpJ o1 k !,f negotiations with each “?t that with Nicaragua, lari x 3 ' Liberia, and Uruguay. ■ °een agreed only to enter into eri ? ? cal exchange of most-fav-■2 n ,. lo , n treatment. siraha’s trade with the 10 coun\s°?cerned represented only 3.5 of th e.total trade of 1947-48. ia « c encessions of benefit to Ausiri.. ade by European countries ah Ccn eerned wool, tanning maAether of pearl, wheat, barley, O h. p / nd Pears. Indirect benefits ,poetically the whole range i rf >t la ' s Primary products. Wiru Australian concessions in- - the exemption of primmip REPORTED IN DISTRESS • z aircraft make CONTACT ■’ SUVA, October 10. led h?, vessel Awahou (410 tons), tenor -A* Carr Shipping Company, 81 of Fiji to be S!nking 200 mil ° s ■\'hp‘r> ster , radioed for assistance, Ke a’ i ya New Zealand Air Force ■y sent Bay, Suva, immedi--1 5 Catalina to the vessel. ■i th~ as are maintaining contact ■tel The Carpenter Line ■ resrj. &einba has been diverted to ■clo c l <’ and is expected to arrive at ■ternA morning. The Fiji ■ch has also sent the Dengei, ■ to-mo reac h the Awahou at 10 ■if an< l will take her in ■he & i s SHU afloat. ■dcjni- is loaded with empty ■ a cr’e w of 22 hSS seven P assen § er£

, age on cotton yarns, ball and roller f bearings, straw, paper, and strawboard, timber, cream separators, churns and vats, olives in bulk, sponges, bandsaw steel, rennet arsenic trioxide, blind rollers, and almonds. The duty on arsenic, trioxide j o!1 v r v„ and a!m °nds was also reduced slightly. Some of these goods were alreadv exempted from primage in this year’s Budget as a part of a plan to reduce the duties on raw materials required for Australian industries. Further modification in the levels of American tariffs towards the 10 countries would help to alleviate the present unbalance between the trad" of the United States and other countries, and Australia v-ould share in trade ma^°r international chairman of the customs administration section of the Sydney ChambeL °.l Commerce (Mr R. J. Williams' said that the removal of primage duty on the articles mentioned would mean a reduction of about 10 per cent, in their landed cost in Australia. EXCHANGE CONTROL EVADED BRITISH MERCHANTS PAID IN DOLLARS (Rec. 3 p.m.) LONDON, October 10. More than £50,000.000 worth of dollars have been lost to the Britisn Treasury because some London merchants have exported diamonds and pearls to New York bv way of the > British post office in Tangier, says the Tangier correspondent of the “Daily Express.” While the Bank of England received sterling for these exports, the sellers in London are known to have been paid in dollars after the goods reached America. The scale of this evasion of the exchange control regulations has so alarmed the British Treasurv that it has sent officials from London to study this method of trading in Tangier, which is an international free-money City.