BRITAIN & INDIA

Hokitika Guardian, 14 January 1935, Page 5

BRITAIN & INDIA

TRADE AGREEMENT GENERAL PRINCIPLES STATED. (Per British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, January 10. The text of the trade agreement signed by the United Kingdom and India yesterday was published this evening. It is supplementary to the main - Ottawa Agreement with India and deals in the main with Indian protective duties, in regard to which it was not possible at Ottawa to secure anything very definite. The agreement which remains in force so long as the main Ottawa agreement continues, does not deal with particular rates of duty, but with general principles. It provides, inter-alia, that the Government of India will continue • to apply the established principle of “discriminating” in the protection to Indian industries, the amount ■ accorded being only so much as is required to equate a fair selling price for. indian goods with that of imported goods. So far as is consistent with this principle the, duties onUpited Kingdom goods will be lower than those on foreign goods, and these morgin s will not he altered to the detriment of the United Kingdom.

In effect, the principle of full opportunity of reasonable .competition contained in the Canadian and Australian Ottawa is established, but in more precise language

On its part the Government' of the United Kingdom recognises that import duties constitute an indispensible element in Indian revenues and that, accordingly, revenue jconsiddrations gnust ; liave due weight in fixing the levels of import duties, but the Government of India undertakes thait over-iriding revenue duties will only be imposed on goods subjects to protective duties where • this is essential ,from the point of view lof revenue.

The Government of India undertakes that industries in Great Britain will be given full opportunity of putting their case before the Indian Tariff Board. . , i.

In a separate exchange of letters: the Government of India renews its assurance of a reduction in the duty on cotton piecegoods as soon as revenue considerations will permit the removal of the general revenue surcharge of 5 per cent. The. United Kingdom Government, for its part, gives certain assurances as to the treatment..-,of; Indian -cotton piecegoods in the colonies.