EMPIRE TARIFFS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26531, 5 August 1947, Page 5

EMPIRE TARIFFS

AMERICA SEEKS REDUCTION BARGAINING AT GENEVA N.Z.P.A. Special Correspondent Rec. 7 p.m. LONDON, Aug. 4. The Ignited States delegation at the Geneva Trade Conference is finding it harder to cut down or eliminate Imperial preferences in tariff rates of Great Britain and her dominions than to obtain reciprocal concessions in the British rates themselves, reports a correspondent in the European edition of the New York Herald Tribune. The correspondent says that, though it is understood that a tentative agreement has been reached by the BritishAmerican delegations on tariff reductions covering about four-fifths of the major commodities interesting both nations', a reduction of Imperial preferences is another matter. It always involves two or more British nations instead of one. and the maintenance of the preferential system is a principle with strong political backing in five British Empire Parliaments It momently seems extremely unlikely that much of a dent will be made in that system by the United States efforts, even though a considerably number of preferences may be modified slightly. . The difficulty in cutting down Imperial preferences arises from the fact that neither the United Kingdom nor any dominion will diminish a preference unilaterally. When, for instance, the United States suggests a reduction of Imperial preference on Australian dried and canned fruits sold in Britain, the United Kingdom replies that Australia would be the loser in any such bargain, and an agreement would depend on what America can give Australia in the way of tariff concessions to obtain her assent. Actually, the correspondent; adds, the entire success or failure of the American negotiations with the dominions hangs on the cut in American wool tariff. Granted that, it is believed a very sizeable body of mutual tariff concessions may be arranged between the United States and the entire British Commonwealth. /