Tariff Concessions Granted By U.S.

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27990, 9 June 1956, Page 9

Tariff Concessions Granted By U.S.

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

(Rec. 10 p.m.) WASHINGTON, June 7. The United States has granted new tariff concessions on imports worth nearly 1,000,000,000 dollars a year. In return foreign nations have given concessions on United States exports worth hundreds of millions of dollars a year. The concessions were worked out by the United States and 21 other nations participating in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (G.A.T.T.) during four months of negotiations at Geneva. The concessions granted by the United States cover a host of items, including Scotch whisky, motor-cars, aircraft and synthetic rubber. Among the United States export items on which foreign nations granted concessions are beer, machine tools, tobacco, heavy machinery, motor vehicles, aircraft and petroleum products.

Canada has obtained tariff reductions on more than 300,000,000 dollars worth of goods in the first general round of world tariff bargaining in four years. About two-thirds of the concessions will help expand Canadian exports to the United States. Canada has agreed to /iold either the line or reduce rates on about 180,000,000 dollars’ worth of goods, including the elimination of a longstanding 22% per cent, tariff on newsprin and the reduction of her tariffs on beer. The concessions, announced In the House of Commons today by Canada’s Trade Minister (Mr C. D. Howe), were negotiated at Geneva under G.A.T.T. Authorities said that while the concessions obtained were important, they were not spectacular. A Canberra message says tariff concessions of benefit to Australia have been announced under G.A.T.T. The Acting-Minister for Trade (Mr William McMahon) said in Canberra that only small agreements were concluded on behalf of Australia, but nevertheless they would be useful. The agreements were with Germany, the United States, and Austria. Mr McMahon said the principal concessions were made on fresh apples, tanning extracts, meat extracts, frozen rabbits, lead, ore, honey, bakery products, medicine, eucalyptus oil, and catgut. Mr McMahon said that in return Australia had made minor concessions on some items of machinery.