TRADE CONFERENCE

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 February 1947, Page 8

TRADE CONFERENCE

AMERICAN PROPOSALS FOR . NEGOTIATIONS | IMPERIAL PREFERENCE ISSUE ! NEW YORK, Feb. 12. J “Between 100 and 120 people, in- - eluding perhaps 40 clerical assistants, j will -represent the United States at the Geneva trade treaty conference, to . begin on April 8,” says the Washington correspondent of the New York Times. “The American committee will negotiate separately with each of the other 17 participating nations. “In addition, there will be one overall series of negotiations dealing with the proposed international trade organisation stemming from the Bretton Woods conference, and designed to police trade agreements in the post-war woyld. Furthermore, with the United Kingdom and all other -members of the British Commonwealth -represented there is _certain to be a special study of Dominion preference in relation to the broader multilateral treaty programme.” ■British Pessimism. Reuter’s financial editor reports .British pessimism over the United i .States tariff policy compromise between the State Department and the Republican Senators A. H. Vandenberg and E. Milliken. He -says that British -observers now expect smaller results in American tariff concessions from the Geneva trade conference in April. The Americans seemed willing, at the London conference in November, to grant big concessions, but the concessions now seem likely to be small and, in some cases, merely a token. The State Department *and the Senators decided that any future trade agreement should include a definite escape clause providing for cancellation if the agreement imperilled American domestic interests. British officials regard the escape clause as too definite. Britain in any agreement with the United States, will insist on an escape clause as big as the American and on its application • to preferences besides tariffs. . tx/t-h-i Senators Vandenberg and Milliken presumably do not dissent from the State Department’s version that either party to a trade treaty may cancel any tariff concessions if they threaten seriously to injure domestic producers. This implies as much latitude for Britain as the United States, but if the words “tariff concessions’ exclude “preference concessions” from the escape clause there will be the gravest dissent in the British Commonwealth. , Republican Leadership. The State Department has agreed to the demand of the Senate Republican leadership that all future reciprocal trade agreements shall contain the so-called escape clause and that the most favoured nation clause shall be with-held from any nation refusing the reciprocal : privilege. This disclosure was made ’ by Senator A. Smith. (Republican, New Jersey), who received a written i assurance that the. department agrees 1 to proposals from Senators A. H. ; Vandenberg and E. Milliken, chair- ’ men respectively of the Senate 1 Foreign Relations and Finance CominitteGS Senator Smith, hailing the compromise formula as an assurance that the ' United States would continue economic collaboration with other nations, * quoted a letter from the Under Sec- ' retary of Economic Affairs (Mi. ; William Clayton) saying that the ' escape clause is to take care ot any possible mistakes that may be made in any trade agreement. Adjustments will be made if serious injury to an American industry is even threatened.