INDUSTRY AND TRADE
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canvas footwear without making any recommendations. Following this, representations were made by five Canadian rubber companies for the introduction of alternative specific import duties which would have the effect of raising very substantially the duty on Hong Kong rubber footwear. The Commerce and Industry Depart- ment assisted the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and the Hong Kong Exporters' Association in the preparation of a joint brief to the Canadian Tariff Board, setting forth reasons against the adoption of these changes. A public hearing was held by the Board in March 1958, and towards the end of the year the Board recommended to the Federal Government that the tariff rates on imported rubber footwear should be left unchanged.
In October reports were received that the issue of import licences for Hong Kong-manufactured gloves had been suspended by the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs. Official representations were made to the Netherlands Government, as a result of which the temporary suspension was removed in November.
In the same month it was reported from Zurich that the Swiss customs authorities had limited the duty-free import of grey cloths from Hong Kong to those which, after finishing treatment, would not be resold to West European and North American countries. This action appears to have arisen from a misapprehension by the Swiss Government as to Hong Kong's relationship with the Organization for European Economic Co-operation and the right of access of its goods to the United States and Canada. The United Kingdom Government was requested to make appropriate repre- sentations to the Swiss Government.
Import duties on rubber footwear, piece-goods and certain types of garments were increased in the British East African territories from May 1958. Correspondence with the Government of Uganda revealed that these increases were designed principally to raise additional revenue, but also to protect the nascent domestic industry. The effects of these changes are being closely watched. Trade Promotion. The activities of the Government in the field of trade promotion have been generally described in Chapter 1. Succeeding paragraphs provide further details of the year's work of the Trade Promotion Branch of the Commerce and Industry Department. It should also be mentioned here that in all these activities the Director of Commerce and Industry is ably assisted