International Trade Files, Lot 57D284, Box 112, Folder “Export Restrictions”

Working Paper of the United States Delegation to the Fifth Session of the Contracting Parties to GATT

restricted

limited c

GATT/CP.5/39/Rev. 1

A Review of Quantitative Export Restrictions

note by the executive secretary

At the Fourth Session the Working Party on Quantitative Restrictions suggested that it was desirable to carry out an enquiry on [Page 720] quantitative restrictions on exports maintained by contracting parties under various provisions of Articles XI–XX and that this might receive the early attention of the Contracting Parties. At the fourth meeting of the Fifth Session, the Contracting Parties decided, in principle, that information relating to the application of export restrictions should be obtained, and the Secretariat was asked to supply a more detailed proposal. (Ref. GATT/CP.5/3 and SR.4.1)

A number of representatives who participated in the discussion on 4th November did not favour an enquiry if it would involve contracting parties in answering a lengthy questionnaire. Accordingly, it is proposed that the Contracting Parties might authorize the Executive Secretary to invite contracting parties to submit statements on the restrictive measures which they apply to exports, naming the products restricted and describing the method of restriction, together with a note of the circumstances which gave rise to the application of each measure.

Contracting parties might be asked to submit their statements not later than April 30, 1951, and the Executive Secretary might be authorized to prepare a memorandum, on the basis of the statements received for submission to the Sixth Session.2

  1. In the Department of State files, these GATT documents are located in Lot 57D284, Box 111. The fourth meeting of the Fifth Session of the CP’s occurred on November 4, and Doc. GATT/CP.5/SR.4 incorporates the minutes of that meeting. Doc. GATT/CP.5/3, dated November 3, 1950, is a previous “Note by the Executive Secretary” on this item, prepared as a Working Paper for the November 4 meeting. A valuable reference source enumerating the documentation of the Contracting Parties’ Fifth Session is found in Doc. GATT/CP/INF/6, 10 January 1951, “Fifth Session List of Documents Issued from 3 August 1950 to 20 December 1950,” located in Lot 57D284, Box 111, Binder captioned “Index 5th Sess & 3d TN’s.”
  2. The Contracting Parties took final action on this item at their 25th meeting on December 16, and the final consensus, in the words of the Chairman was, that “…the sending of laws and decrees by Governments would be optional and the Secretariat should simply ask that information be sent in as complete a form as possible.” (Doc. GATT/CP.5/SR.25, Lot 57D284, Box 111) The item was described as follows in the “Report to the Secretary of State” by the Chairman of the United States Delegation: “Agenda Item 10: Consideration of a Review of Quantitative Export Restrictions. … At the Fifth Session the Contracting Parties authorized the Executive Secretary to invite the Contracting Parties to submit statements on the restrictive measures which they apply to exports, naming the products restricted and describing the method of restriction in as complete a form as possible. It was agreed to consider these statements at the Sixth Session.” (Lot 57D284, Box 112, “Misc. Reports”)