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UKDEL 0.E.C.D. Telno. 50 Saving to FCO
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countries he would only refer the matter of fuller statistics to Tokyo. As for Japanese import duties not bound under the GATT, the legal rather then effective and sometimes lower rates would probably constitute the base for any tariff reduc
tions.
Primary Products
4.) Di Martino (EEC Commission) circulated a paper proposing the provisional exclusion from proferences pending further discussion of primary products, as listed by the UNCTAD Secretariat in TD/B/C.2/3 (although the ELC were ready to consider the cxclusion clso of other products regarded by some countries as primary). The rin would not be to compile a definitive definition of primary products and countries might wish later to include some that were not of major importance. 5. Support was predictably received from Japan (on petroleum products and non-ferous metals in particular), Canada (who had no new suggestions to make on the definition problem). Australia (who expressed reservations about the UNCTAD list) and New Zealand. Other countries reserved. their position. Morris said, as a preliminary reaction, that the U.K. which had few non- revenue duties on primary products, had no strong views on the retention of primary products in chapters 25-99 if the general view was that they should be excluded; the U.K. offer in chapter 1-24 was. generally intended to be confined to processed products but we had not followed the UNCTAD list rigidly.
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Cotton Textiles
6. Di Martino emphasised the importance of including cotton textiles, particularly in view of the forthcoming negotiations for the renewal of the GATT Long Term Agreement; most other countries proposed to exclude then and the U.K. action on tariffs had (allegedly) complicated the position. He was, however, unable to answer without further consideration to Leary's (U.S.) question why duty free entry within existing quotas would constitute any real inducement to the 1.d.c.'s. Morris argued that the moderate tariff protection announed by the U.K. was more liberal than the continuation of quotas (oven if duty-free). There was no general support for Di Martino's thesis but he will no doubt return to it. M.
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/General
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