to full-duty status, the Philippine Trade Act of 1946 34 established absolute quotas on imports from the Philippines of rice, cigars, scrap and filler tobacco, coconut oil, and buttons of pearl or shell. The act continued with some modification the absolute quota on imports of sugar from the Philippines provided for in the Sugar Act of 1937. It also continued without change the absolute quota on imports of hard-fiber cordage provided for in the Philippine Independence Act of 1939. Under the Philippine Trade Act, those commodities that are subject to import quotas, together with all other Philippine products, will become dutiable by gradual steps, beginning July 4, 1954. After July 3, 1974, when the full duties will apply, the quotas will no longer be imposed under the terms of the act. Besides the quotas specifically provided for, the Philippine Trade Act of 1946 authorizes the President to establish absolute quotas on imports of other Philippine articles which he finds, after investigation by the Tariff Commission, are coming, or are likely to come, into substantial competition with like articles which are the product of the United States. Thus far, no action has been taken under this provision. Until 1951, none of the quotas provided for in the Philippine Trade Act of 1946 were restrictive. In 1951 the quota on imports of hard-fiber cordage was filled in November; none of the other quotas, however, were filled during that year. MIXING REGULATIONS FOR RUBBER During most of the period covered by this report, the United States continued to maintain mixing regulations for a comprehensive list of rubber manufactures. These regulations were part of a broad program of controls, established pursuant to the Rubber Act of 1948 36 and the Defense Production Act of 1950, to conserve the supply of rubber for national defense and to assure its equitable distribution. The mixing regulations for rubber, which were in the form of so-called manufacturing specifications, fixed the maximum percentage of natural rubber that could be used in the manufacture of each rubber product. Under these regulations, no natural rubber could be used in certain specified products; only a specified maximum percentage could be used in others; and still others could be made entirely of natural rubber. On "The provisions of the Philippine Trade Act were accepted by the Philippine Government on July 3, 1946; in the following year they were incorporated in an executive agreement between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines. 35 The United States has maintained some form of mixing regulations for rubber since July 1, 1941. See Operation of the Trade Agreements Program (fourth report), pp. 156 and 157. "On June 23, 1952, the President signed legislation (Public Law 404, 82d Cong.) extending the Rubber Act of 1948 from June 30, 1952, to March 31, 1954. April 21, 1952, the United States revoked the manufacturing specifications as well as most other controls relating to rubber. During the period July 1, 1951, to April 21, 1952, the United States mixing regulations for rubber apparently had little or no hampering effect on imports of natural rubber. United States imports of rubber during that period, which were for both stockpile and current consumption, were limited primarily by the supply available. SUBSIDIES Article XVI of the General Agreement provides that "if any contracting party grants or maintains any subsidy, including any form of income or price support, which operates directly or indirectly to increase exports of any product from, or to reduce imports of any product into, its territory, it shall notify the Contracting Parties in writing of the extent and nature of the subsidization, of the estimated effect of the subsidization on the quantity of the affected product or products imported into or exported from its territory and of the circumstances making the subsidization necessary." On March 11, 1952, pursuant to this article, the United States submitted to the Contracting Parties its third notification on subsidies." In this notification, which contained preliminary data on the subsidies in effect during the fiscal year 1951-52, the United States reported on the export-subsidy programs conducted under section 32 of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, as amended, under section 407 of the Agricultural Act of 1949, and under section 2 of the International Wheat Agreement Act of 1949. In its third notification the United States did not report on price-support operations conducted under the Agricultural Act of 1949; such operations had been discussed in both previous notifications. Section 32 of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, as amended, provides that certain funds shall be made available annually to the Secretary of Agriculture for a number of purposes, including the encouragement of the exportation of agricultural products by making benefit payments in connection with exports. In its third notification the United States reported that section 32 programs would be in effect during all or part of the fiscal year 1951-52 for fresh apples and pears, dried apples, dried prunes, raisins, honey, and certain citrus fruits and products. Section 407 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 provides, in effect, that the Commodity Credit Corporation may sell for export, at a loss, any commodity owned or controlled by it. From March through December 1951, export sales under section 407, based on the announced price lists 37 The United States submitted its first notification on subsidies in April 1950, and its second notification, in April 1951. See Operation of the Trade Agreements Program (fourth report), pp. 157–159. of the Commodity Credit Corporation, included those of dry edible beans, dried whole eggs, nonfat dry milk solids, and white potatoes. As of January 1, 1952, dry edible beans were the only product listed in the Corporation's export price list. From March through December 1951 the Commodity Credit Corporation also sold directly to other governments, at reduced prices, nonfat dry milk solids (to Israel, Japan, the Republic of the Philippines, and Yugoslavia), dried whole eggs (to Israel and the United Kingdom), and dry edible beans (to Israel). In its notification, the United States stated that the bulk of the commodities sold on a government-to-government basis did not enter commercial channels. In order to adhere to its obligations under the International Wheat Agreement, the Commodity Credit Corporation has paid exporters the difference between the market price for wheat and wheat flour and the wheat-agreement prices. The United States reported that these payments were not the type of subsidy defined in article XVI of the General Agreement. Chapter 6 Changes in Tariffs, Exchange Controls, and Quantitative Import Restrictions by Countries With Which the United States Has Trade Agreements INTRODUCTION As in previous years, this part of the Commission's report on the operation of the trade agreements program deals primarily with important developments in the application of tariffs, exchange-control regulations, and quantitative import restrictions by the various foreign countries with which the United States had trade agreements in force during all or part of the period under review. During 1951-52 there were no outstanding developments in the tariff structure of any of these countries. Certain changes in duties and other charges on imports made as a result of the negotiations at the Torquay Conference of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade are discussed in chapter 3 of this report. During 1951-52 most of the countries with which the United States had trade agreements continued to be in balance-of-payments difficulties, principally concerning trade with the dollar area, but also, in many instances, concerning trade with other areas. The General Agreement permits contracting parties that are experiencing such difficulties to apply quantitative import restrictions as an emergency measure, and such countries tend to rely on these nontariff restrictions rather than on tariffs to limit either imports of certain articles from countries or areas with which they are in balance-of-payments difficulties or total imports. of certain articles. The bilateral trade agreements in force between the United States and several foreign countries likewise permit the use of quantitative restrictions on imports for balance-of-payments reasons. After several years of experience in the use of trade restrictions, the countries that employ them have developed a fairly common pattern of controls. Almost all the countries with which the United States has trade agreements prohibit imports except under license. This means, in practice, that they require traders to obtain import licenses for all or part of the goods that they purchase in the United States and in other hard-currency countries; some countries require licenses for imports from all sources. Most of the countries that require import licenses also 28471054 -10 135 |