NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN
W(B)L 51-7406
What she would Contrive to enjoy
Extension of LTA type
کا
ushictions would be contrary British trading interests, and the United
Kingdom, for its pair, is in
any
to
Case aiming replace quantitative
Mestrictions under the LTA from January 1972 by simple tariff
no
Contists with no
Sever
CONFIDENTIAL
be extended to cover all textiles and under
threat of arbitrary action by the importing
countries concerned Hong Kong has given volun-
tary undertakings outside the GATT to restrain exports of two or three types of non-cotton
garments to Canada, Sweden and Norway.
arrangements were not altogether disadvantageous
to Hong Kong, because they raised prices and guaranteed berfa large share of the markets; but they have caused HMG considerable embarrass-
These
ment on the principal ground that they consti-
tute undesirable precedents for the extension of
LTA-type restrictions not only throughout the
whole field of textiles but to other commodities.
We might then come under pressure to impose
similar restrictions on imports into the United Kingdom.
9. In recent months, the USA has intensified
its pressure for a system of comprehensive
restraints on imports of non-cotton textiles,
notably from Japan, Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan.
There is no convincing evidence that the
American textiles industry as a whole is threatened with a serious injury by the scale threatened with a one or two types
Cocoducers of of imports, although the
*
ghare on the sp
seeters
may be experiencing eensiderable difficulties.
Argument
10" The arrangements on cotton textiles
referred to in paragraph 7 above, are well
limits on volume understood in the GATT, and it is now proposed
especially-
to give Hong Kong the same degree of indepen- and ofter Goods dence of action on non-cotton textiles as at present on cotton textiles and to do this by a
delegation of authority.
سلام
1. Whatt want to achieve is a situation in which (i)/Hong Kong Government could reach such arrangements on non-cotton textiles, as they
te
The
^
wished with United States and other Governments, and (ii) we would not find ourselves prejudiced
in pursuing our own commercial policies by the fact that we would be regarded as having sold our own pass by authorising Hong Kong to reach
/ such