Wotomac roàtà&Uûto W A S m u M i T O N N E W S RTTOFATT By R O B E R T G. G I B B S , Associate Editor U. S. lowers tariffs o n m a n y chemical imports t o obtain concessions o n exports to foreign countries · · · Sweden a n d Italy most affected HB export markets for Tcals, paints, plastics,
many chemiand related products will be improved by the concessions obtained by the U. S. from foreign nations at the trade agreements conference recently concluded in France. To obtain desired concessions from foreign countries, the U. S. will lower import duties on several industrial chemicals. Under the terms of the Trade Agreements Act of 1934. as amended and extended, the U. S. in 1947 entered into a comprehensive, multilateral agreement with 22 other countries to reduce tariffs >tnd other trade barriers. Substantial tariff reductions have resulted from this agreement. From April to August 1949. these 23 countries have negotiated with 10 additional countries at Annecy, France, to effect various additional tariff reductions. Entitled "The Annecy Protocol of Terms of Accession to the General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade," the agreement will become effective with respect to each of the 10 new countries when two thirds of the 23 original countries have indicated their approval and when the 10 countries are ready to put tariff concessions into effect. The earliest date for this action is Jan. 1, 1950, and Hie latest date May 30. 1950. The 33 countries involved carry on nearly four fifths of all world trade. The tariff concessions made at Geneva an» I Annecy now apply to products which account for more than two thirds of the import trade of the participating countries and over half of the import tracl·· of the world. In addition to the tariff concessions agreed upon, the agreement also cover.* other trade barriers such as trade discrimination, quantitative restrictions of imports, internal taxation, and other related issues. Concessions Obtained by U· S· At Annecy the U. S. sought tariff concessions from the 10 acceding countries on exports from the U. S. to these countries totaling $537 million (1947). This figure represented 39% of all U. S. exports to these countries. An estimated additional $100 million worth of U. S. exports will benefit from concessions made between these 10 nations and the 22 original member nations. Exports of $22 billion in 1939 from the U. S. to the 32 participating countries VOLUME
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amounted to 70% of all U. S. exports. The same percentage held in 1947 although the dollar value of the exports had quadrupled ($9.7 billion). In addition to chemicals, paints, plastics, and related products, tariff concessions were obtained on many other majoi items including medi o£ tUiê, product.
The Quaker Qàts (pmpany 1 9 0 0 X BOARD OF TRADE BLDG. 1 4 1 W . JACKSON BLVD., CHICAGO 4 , 111. NEW YORK, I f 3 0 X WHITEHALL BLDG., N . Y . 4 , N . Y . In San Francisco, The Griffin Chemical Company · In Australia, Swift & Company, Pty. L t d . , Sydney · In Europe, Quaker Oats-Graanproducten N . V . , Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Quaker Oats (France) S. A . 4 2 , Rue Pasquier, Paris 8E, Franc·
.OCTOBER
3 1,
1949
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its forint*!- import tariffs on insecticide» and fertilizers. Nicaragua has estab lished moderate duties on paint and var nish products. Uruguay will have mod erate duties on imports of sulfur and anilines. Concessions Granted by V. S· In return for concessions obtained from 10 countries, the U. S. granted con cessions on imports from these countries, including reduction in duties, and guar antees of existing duty rates or duty free status. Total U. S. imports of $382.5 million from the 10 countries in 1948 accounted for over 10% of their total exports. Items on which conces sions are being granted accounted for $143 million of the above total. There fore, the concessions cover about 37% of U. S. imports from the 10 countries. Duties were reduced on items which accounted for 15% of total imports in 1948 from these countries. Duties were fixed at existing levels for items totaling 1%, while duty free status was agreed to for well over one third of the total imports. The 10 new countries will also benefit from concessions made by the U. S. at Oeneva (1947) to the original contract ing countries. Specific concessions granted include reduced import duties on olive oil and styrax from Greece, botivert oil from
Haiti, and crude balsam from Nicaragua. Duties on Uruguayan casein and lactarine or mixtures remain unchanged. Italy will receive reduced rates on tartaric acid and cream of tartar, boric acid, mercury compounds, glycerophosphoric acid, salts and compounds, aconite, cer tain leaves and flowers such as asafetida and manna, edible olive oil, lemon oil. sienna, vermillion reds containing mer cury, and castile soap. Sweden will benefit from reduced im port rates on cesium chloride, zinc «•hloride, zinc arsenate, and wood im pregnating materials containing salts of arsenic and/or chromium. Other reduc tions effect diethylamine acetoxylidide, including xylocaine, sponges, cellulose compounds (including vulcanized and hard fiber compounds), and sodium and potassium hydroxide. Duties on am monium-chrome alums are reduced, while those on potassium-chrome alum remain fixed. The Reciprocal Trade Agreements Ex tension Act of 1949 gives the President authority until 1951 to enter into tariff reducing agreements with foreign coun tries on a reciprocal basis. To put pro visions of the act in effect, the President issued an executive order setting forth procedures for administration of the act. Negotiations to further reduce tariff bar riers are expected to take place next summer.
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Washington Briefs From the C&EN Washington News Bureau ECA has added 15,000 carats of indus trial diamonds to the national stockpile through a recent purchase in The Neth erlands, arranged by the special ECA mission in Holland with The Netherlands government using the special ECA eounterpart in Thie Netherlands. New OIT applications to export chemicals require identifying data, in cluding grade, form, concentration, mix tures, or ingredients. Applications for chemicals containing lead must indicate the lead content, ^while those for copper wire exports must set forth the weight of the copper in the wire. Other changes affecting exports are amendments 45 and 46 of the Fourth General Revision of Export Regulations, which deal with provisions for individual and other vali dated licenses, and the filing of appli cations for export licenses. (Federal Register. Vol. 14, numbers 197 and 202.) The Senate has postponed until next year action on the bill to legalize indus try's use of the *'basing point" pricing system. Among iti^ins recently added to the Positive List of Commodities for which export licenses are required are shellac, certain asbestos products, pyrethrum ex tract, and activated charcoal and carbon (except from, animal bone). Industrial chemicals included are .sulfuric and hy drofluoric acid, allyl alcohol, octadecanol, certain, oxides of molybdenum, sodium hydroxide, sodium iodide, and ethylene. Medical products such as agaragar, peptone, mercury bichloride, and C.P. silver nitrate are also included. Allocation Order D-l, which required the Army to allocate 10% of its produc tion of anhydrous ammonia to domestic users, has been revoked. With the im proved domestic situation, Department of Commerce officials foresee no hardships as a result of this action. The Interstate Commerce Commission has announced that individuals desiring to be heard on proposed amendments to the regulations for the transportation of explosives and o>thcr dangerous articles so advise ICC before Nov. 7, 1949. In the absence of such requests the commis sion will take whatever action it deems necessary. Copies of the proposed amendments are set forth in Docket 3666, which is available from the ICC. Additional miscellaneous amendments affecting the withdrawals of tax-free alcohol from industrial alcohol plants, bonded warehouses, and denaturing plants have been issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue. (Federal Register, Vol. 14, number 203.)
CHEMICAL AND ENGINEERING NEWS
