ENG-1962 — Page 109

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INDUSTRY AND TRADE

procedures for the control of textile exports from the Colony to the United States. While some progress was made, protracted negotiations on the details of the operation of the Short Term Arrangement continued until its expiry on 30th September. Addi- tional requests by the United States Government for restraint received after March resulted in exports under 30 categories listed in the Short Term Arrangement being under restraint by the time it expired.

The original American request for restraint had followed a similar request from the Canadian Government in February in respect of three categories of garments. Hong Kong's representa- tives at the March discussions in Washington therefore went on to Ottawa for discussions on similar lines with the Canadian authorities. Since Canada's imports from the Colony in the three categories in question had already exceeded the level of restraint requested, exports were suspended. Canada made one more request for restraint before the end of the Short Term Arrangement.

Hong Kong's experiences in the working of the Short Term Arrangement were the subject of a paper presented by the United Kingdom delegation to the International Cotton Textiles Committee at Geneva when it met in September to consider the final draft of the Long Term Arrangement. But the final text contained inade- quate safeguards against the possibility of serious disruption arising in exporting countries and it became clear that bilateral negotia- tions within the framework and spirit of the arrangement would be the only way of safeguarding the Colony's interests in this respect.

Informal and preliminary negotiations with the United States authorities were opened in September with a view to avoiding any further disorder in the Colony's textile trade and to reaching a bilateral understanding. These negotiations were somewhat pro- tracted but early in December agreement was finally achieved. The Cotton Advisory Board was consulted at various stages during these discussions. The agreement related only to the first year of the Long Term Arrangement and was solely in respect of the 30 cotton textile categories which had been restrained during the period of the Short Term Arrangement. For its part, Hong Kong undertook to restrain exports of these 30 categories at the agreed levels determined during the period of that arrangement. In return,