CONFIDENTIAL
2
- ··(c) ~ Hong Kong's view remained that French imports
from Hong Kong should be treated in the same way as imports from other dependencies of former 0.5.E.C. countries. But if the French Government. were still unable to concede this principle, further steps should be taken to liberalise trade. A useful effort had been made in recent years in this direction, but the volume of trade - both ways was still small. The French performance in the Hong Kong market was still modest; in fact, the French share had declined in the past year to three- quarters of 1%, despite an increase in French global exports of 12.5%.
(a)
Mr. Haddon-Cave also expressed Hong Kong's appreciation of the cooperative way in which the Services des Autorisations had provided Hong Kong with lists of quota holders and assured the French officials that the information would be used discreetly.
Restrictions c. Cotton Textiles
5.
Mr. Haddon-Cave explained that Hong Kong had been unable to hand-over a sec md Aide Memoire dealing with cotton textiles (para. 5 of the draft Aide Memoire at enclosure 1 of T.I.A.B. M/47/66) because of the revised time-table for the current discussions in Geneva
A
relating to the future of the Long Term Arrangement. He suggested that the best course at present would be to settle Article 2 quotas (see footnote) for the nine months ending 30th Septembar 1967 (the date on which the L.T.A. expires) now on the understanding that both sides would enter into a negotiation on future quota levels and on the form of control (import restrictions or export restraint) at some mutually convenient date. miter receiving instructions from their Government, the French officials accepted this formula.
6.
The quotas for the first nine months of 1967 were calculated by taking the overall quota for 1965 (325 tons) and increasing it to 350 tone, the pre-determined level or imports from Hong Kong by the end of the fifth Long Term Yoar. Three-quarters of this figure was then distributed as follows:
toms
Grey goods
101.25
Finished piecegoods
56.25
Household rooda
26.25
Knitwear
37.50
Clothing
41.25
Total:
262.50
Footnote:. The French restricted imports of cotton, textiles before
the L.T.A. was signed. These restrictions were thus "legalised" under Article 2 and they remain an import control.
5/Beatriotiona
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