Minister sees threat in U.S.-E.E.C. trade war

Press, 25 July 1985, Page 17

Minister sees threat in U.S.-E.E.C. trade war

NZPA staff correspondent Sydney New Zealand and Australia, under threat from the developing trade war between the United States and Europe, will look to more co-operation in marketing food exports, says the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Moyle. While problems had to be resolved between the Tasman neighbours over marketing under closer economic relations, Mr Moyle said, both countries were looking to the threat of the fallout from the trade war to world markets. “We are conscious of the dangers of a trade war between Europe and the United States, and we share Australian concerns,” he said in an interview before his return to Wellington from an Australian Agriculture Ministers’ meeting in Darwin. “Anything we can do in conjunction with Australia we will do. “Agriculture is under stress around the world, and Australia and New Zealand are bearing the brunt of it,” Mr Moyle said. Both countries saw the threat of the growth of protectionism and trade wars as something requiring attention. Mr Moyle said there

would be more co-operation with Australia in future in the marketing of agricultural and horticultural produce. Already there was evidence of a joint approach in the recent action to protect southern bluefin tuna from over-fishing by the Japanese. Fisheries managers blamed diminishing stocks of the once plentiful tuna on Japanese fishing. The Japanese took too many young fish in Australian waters on their migratory path which also took them across the Tasman to New Zealand, Mr Moyle said. Joint approaches were made to the Japanese who were excluded from the fishery, which was now expected to recover fully in a few years. Mr Moyle agreed that a range of problems and mutual suspicions had to be resolved before greater Tasman co-operation became firmly established. One important area of concern in the one-day Agriculture Ministers’ meeting in Darwin was that of Tasmania, which traditionally had regarded Australia as its market for agricultural and horticultural produce, but was being hit hard by New Zealand imports. Mr Moyle said the

Tasmanians' concern was typified by their complaints about imports of frozen peas, now that the New Zealand giant Wattie was marketing frozen vegetables in Australia under its own brand name. He told the Tasmanians that the actual tonnages of peas from New Zealand was less this year than last, and that more peas were in fact coming from the United States. Mr Moyle believes that Tasmania was not supported by other Australian states, not so much because it is one of only two conservative states in a Labour Party-dominated nation, but more for its size. He refused to categorise Australian complaints about imports or proposed imports from New Zealand — as in the case of projected sales of sheepmeat — as an alarmist casting the often more efficient New Zealand as a “bogey.” However, Mr Moyle did say: “Talking in generalities is different when it comes down to talking in actual details. “We are going through an evolutionary process, seeing closer economic relations over a whole range of areas. “We see a whole closer web of commercial linkages, promoting the view of

Australasia as one market.” Mr Moyle warned that while New Zealand had every right to make the most of markets in Australia for its food products, exporters must be careful not to force Australian producers to look overseas — at present New Zealand markets — for places to sell their surplus goods.