COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 2456/92 of 13 July 1992 fixing the import quotas to be opened by Member States in respect of State-trading countries in 1992 and amending Regulation (EEC) No 3420/83
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 3420/83 of 14 November 1983 on import arrangements for products originating in State-trading countries, not liber-alized at Community level (01)() requires the Council to lay down the import quotas to be opened by the Member States in respect of the various State-trading countries for the products listed in Annex III to that Regulation;
Whereas certain adjustments should be made to the import quotas established for 1991 in respect of State-trading countries in order to adapt them to the foreseeable economic situation in 1992;
Whereas, with regard to the quotas for imports under outward processing arrangements of the textile products falling within categories 4 to 8, a certain degree of flexibility should be maintained in the administration of these quotas by the Member States concerned by means of provision for automatic transfer of quantities from one category to another; whereas, to this end, the equivalences between categories provided for in Annex I to Council Regulation (EEC) No 4136/86 of 22 December 1986 on common rules for imports of certain textile products originating in third countries (02)() should be applied;
Whereas the specific quantitative restrictions in respect of certain central and eastern European countries have been abolished in all Member States whilst the non-specific quantitative restrictions in respect of the same countries have been suspended for 1992 in all Member States apart from Spain and Portugal;
Whereas, from 1 January 1993, the continuation of import quotas to be opened solely at national level will be incompatible with the working of the single market to be put into operation on that date; whereas consequently the present arrangements will have to be replaced by a Community mechanism covering any restrictions remaining on 31 December 1992; whereas, pending the adoption of the new mechanism, there should be a derogation, for 1993, from Article 3 (2) of Regulation (EEC) No 3420/83, which stipulates automatic extension of the previous year's import quotas;
Whereas access is needed, at least once a year, to all the statistical data concerning import authorizations granted and utilization by the Member States of each of the quotas opened by this Regulation,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
Article 1
1. Member States shall open for 1992, in respect of State-trading countries, the import quotas set out in the Annexes.
2. Imports authorized between 1 January 1992 and the date of adoption of this Regulation shall be deducted from the corresponding quotas.
Article 2
1. In utilizing the quotas for imports of textile products of categories 4 to 8 under outward processing arrangements, Member States may each year transfer quantities from one or more categories to one or more other categories for the same non-member country of up to 20 % overall of each arrival quota.
Where the quantity resulting from the application of this rate is less than 100 000 pieces, such a quantity may be transferred for each arrival quota as long as equivalent quantities remain in the quota or quotas of origin.
2. The table of equivalence between categories set out in Annex I to Regulation (EEC) No 4136/86 shall be applicable to the transfers referred to in paragraph 1.
3. The Committee referred to in Article 12 of Regulation (EEC) No 3420/83 shall hold consultations three times a year on the utilization of the quotas for imports of textiles under outward processing arrangements.
The Member States concerned shall take this opportunity to provide the Committee with statistical data on the authorizations granted and imports effected under the quotas referred to in this Article.
These statistics shall be broken down by category and country of origin.
Article 3
Unless otherwise indicated, the import quotas for the United Kingdom for textile categories 1 to 114 shall apply only to products defined in Article 12 of the Arrangement regarding International Trade in Textiles.
Article 4
Member States shall send to the Commission, at its request and at least once a year, a final statement of the import authorizations granted and imports actually charged against each of the quotas opened under this Regulation, their percentage utilization and any unused quantities at the end of the year.
Article 5
The provisions of Article 3 (2) of Regulation (EEC) No 3420/83, stipulating automatic extension of the previous year's quotas, shall not be applicable for 1993.
Article 6
This Regulation shall apply from 1 January 1992.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 13 July 1992.