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COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION

OF 15 APRIL 1977

TO THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES OF THE COMMUNITY ESTABLISHING COMMUNITY SURVEILLANCE IN RESPECT OF THE IMPORTATION IN THE COMMUNITY OF CERTAIN IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS COVERED BY THE TREATY ESTABLISHING THE EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY , ORIGINATING IN THIRD COUNTRIES

( 77/330/ECSC )

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,

HAVING REGARD TO THE TREATY ESTABLISHING THE EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY , AND IN PARTICULAR ARTICLE 74 ( 3 ) THEREOF ,

WHEREAS THE SITUATION ON THE COMMON MARKET FOR STEEL HAS BEEN MARKED SINCE THE END OF 1974 BY AN EXTREMELY LOW LEVEL OF ORDERS AND PRICES ;

WHEREAS AT THE SAME TIME IMPORTS OF CERTAIN IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS ORIGINATING IN THIRD COUNTRIES HAVE INCREASED CONSIDERABLY AND THEIR PRICES HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO BRINGING DOWN INTERNAL PRICES ;

WHEREAS THE COMMISSION DECIDED ( 1 ) TO IMPLEMENT SPECIFIC MEASURES PROVIDED FOR IN THE EVENT OF A CRISIS , ON THE BASIS OF ARTICLE 46 OF THE TREATY , IN PARTICULAR AS REGARDS THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE QUARTERLY FORWARD PROGRAMMES RELATING TO DELIVERIES AND IMPORTS OF THE MOST IMPORTANT IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS ;

WHEREAS DETAILED PREPARATION OF THE FORWARD PROGRAMMES REQUIRES THE MOST ACCURATE POSSIBLE KNOWLEDGE OF IMPORT INTENTIONS ;

WHEREAS CARE MUST ALSO BE TAKEN TO SEE THAT THE IMPORTS OF THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THEY ARE EFFECTED DO NOT THREATEN TO CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY TO COMMUNITY PRODUCTION ;

WHEREAS IN THE LIGHT OF THE FOREGOING THE COMMISSION DECISION OF 10 DECEMBER 1975 ( 2 ) ESTABLISHING A SYSTEM OF RETROSPECTIVE STATISTICAL SURVEILLANCE WOULD APPEAR TO BE INADEQUATE ;

WHEREAS IT IS THEREFORE IN THE COMMUNITY'S INTEREST THAT THE IMPORTATION INTO THE COMMUNITY OF CERTAIN IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS ORIGINATING IN THIRD COUNTRIES SHOULD TEMPORARILY BE MADE SUBJECT TO THE PRESENTATION OF AN IMPORT DOCUMENT MEETING UNIFORM CRITERIA ;

WHEREAS THIS DOCUMENT MUST , ON PRESENTATION BY THE IMPORTER OF ONE OR MORE PURCHASE CONTRACTS , BE ISSUED OR ENDORSED BY THE MEMBER STATES WITHOUT DELAY AND FREE OF CHARGE , FOR ANY QUANTITY REQUESTED , WITHOUT ANY RIGHT OF IMPORTATION BEING THEREBY ESTABLISHED FOR THE IMPORTER ;

WHEREAS THE SAID DOCUMENT MAY ACCORDINGLY BE USED ONLY UNTIL SUCH TIME AS THERE IS A CHANGE IN THE IMPORT ARRANGEMENTS ;

WHEREAS THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THIS SYSTEM IS WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO THE MAINTENANCE BY CERTAIN MEMBER STATES OF QUANTITATIVE RESTRICTIONS ON CERTAIN OF THE PRODUCTS IN QUESTION IN RESPECT OF CERTAIN NON-MEMBER COUNTRIES ;

WHEREAS THE PERIOD OF VALIDITY OF THE IMPORT DOCUMENT SHOULD BE FIXED AT THREE MONTHS IN RESPECT OF NON-MEMBER COUNTRIES EVEN AS REGARDS THE ABOVEMENTIONED QUANTITATIVE RESTRICTIONS ;

WHEREAS THERE MUST BE THE MOST RAPID POSSIBLE FLOW OF INFORMATION BETWEEN MEMBER STATES AND THE COMMISSION AS REGARDS THE QUANTITIES AND VALUES STATED IN IMPORT DOCUMENTS ISSUED AND RELATING TO IMPORTS EFFECTED ,

MAKES THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATION :

ARTICLE 1

1 . IMPORTS INTO THE COMMUNITY OF THE IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS COVERED BY THE ECSC TREATY , LISTED IN ANNEX , ORIGINATING IN THIRD COUNTRIES , SHALL BE SUBJECT TO THE ISSUE OF AN IMPORT DOCUMENT . THIS DOCUMENT SHALL BE ISSUED OR ENDORSED BY THE MEMBER STATES , FREE OF CHARGE AND FOR ANY QUANTITIES REQUESTED , WITHIN NOT MORE THAN FIVE WORKING DAYS FROM THE SUBMISSION OF THE APPLICATION AND PRESENTATION OF THE PURCHASE CONTRACT OR CONTRACTS WHICH CONSTITUTE THE GROUND FOR THE APPLICATION . THE IMPORT DOCUMENT MAY ACCORDINGLY BE USED ONLY UNTIL SUCH TIME AS THERE IS A CHANGE IN THE IMPORT ARRANGEMENTS .

2 . THE APPLICATION OF PARAGRAPH 1 SHALL BE WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO THE MAINTENANCE OF QUANTITATIVE RESTRICTIONS IMPOSED BY CERTAIN MEMBER STATES ON CERTAIN IRON AND STEEL PRODUCTS IN RESPECT OF CERTAIN NON-MEMBER COUNTRIES .

3 . THE PERIOD OF VALIDITY OF THE IMPORT DOCUMENT IS HEREBY FIXED AT THREE MONTHS .

ARTICLE 2

1 . THE APPLICATION BY THE IMPORTER MUST STATE :

( A ) THE NAME AND ADDRESS OF THE IMPORTER ;

( B ) THE EXACT DESCRIPTION OF THE PRODUCT ;

( C ) THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN AND , WHERE APPROPRIATE , THE COUNTRY OF LAST EXPORT ;

( D ) THE CIF FREE-AT-FRONTIER PRICE AND THE QUANTITY OF THE PRODUCT IN TONNES ;

( E ) THE DATE OF THE CONTRACT FOR THE PURCHASE OF THE PRODUCTS WHICH IT IS PROPOSED TO IMPORT AND THE PROPOSED DATE AND PLACE OF IMPORTATION .

ARTICLE 3

1 . IN THE FIRST 10 DAYS OF EACH MONTH THE MEMBER STATES SHALL NOTIFY THE COMMISSION OF :

( A ) THE QUANTITIES AND AMOUNTS , CALCULATED ON THE BASIS OF CIF PRICES , FOR WHICH IMPORT DOCUMENTS WERE ISSUED IN THE PRECEDING MONTH ;

( B ) THE IMPORTS EFFECTED IN THE MONTH PRECEDING THE ONE REFERRED TO IN ( A ) .

2 . THE INFORMATION FROM THE MEMBER STATES SHALL BE BROKEN DOWN BY NON-MEMBER COUNTRY OF ORIGIN AND BY PRODUCT , ON THE BASIS OF THE DESCRIPTIONS AND CCT HEADING NOS SET OUT IN THE ANNEX .

ARTICLE 4

THIS RECOMMENDATION SHALL BE NOTIFIED TO THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES AND PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES .

IT SHALL ENTER INTO FORCE IN RESPECT OF EACH MEMBER STATE WITH EFFECT FROM THE DATE OF ITS PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES .

DONE AT BRUSSELS , 15 APRIL 1977 .

FOR THE COMMISSION

THE PRESIDENT

ROY JENKINS

( 1 ) COMMISSION COMMUNICATION RELATING TO THE APPLICATION OF THE CRISIS MEASURES ON THE STEEL MARKET , OJ NO C 304 , 24 . 12 . 1976 , P . 5 .

( 2 ) OJ NO L 7 , 14 . 1 . 1976 , P . 15 .

ANNEX

LIST OF PRODUCTS FOR WHICH THE IMPORT IS SUBJECT TO THE ISSUE OF AN IMPORT DOCUMENT

CCT HEADING NO*PRODUCTS*

73.01 B*HAEMATITE PIG IRON AND CAST IRON*

73.01 C*PHOSPHORIC PIG IRON AND CAST IRON*

73.01 D*OTHER PIG IRON AND CAST IRON*

73.08*IRON OR STEEL COILS FOR RE-ROLLING*

73.10 A I*WIRE ROD*

73.10 A II A ) *REINFORCING BARS*

73.10 A II B ) *OTHER BARS*

73.11 A I*ANGLES , SHAPES AND SECTIONS , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN HOT-ROLLED OR EXTRUDED*

73.12 A*HOOP AND STRIP , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN HOT-ROLLED*

73.13 A II* " ELECTRICAL " SHEETS AND PLATES , OTHER*

73.13 B I A ) *SHEETS AND PLATES , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN HOT-ROLLED , OF A THICKNESS OF 2 MM OR MORE*

73.13 B II B ) *SHEETS AND PLATES , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN COLD-ROLLED , OF A THICKNESS OF MORE THAN 1 MM BUT LESS THAN 3 MM*

73.13 B II C ) *SHEETS AND PLATES , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN COLD-ROLLED , OF A THICKNESS OF 1 MM OR LESS*

73.13 B IV C ) *SHEETS AND PLATES , ZINC-COATED OR LEAD-COATED*

73.15 A V B ) 1*WIRE ROD ( HIGH-CARBON STEEL ) *

73.15 B V B ) 2*BARS , AND RODS , AND HOLLOW MINING DRILL STEEL ; ANGLES , SHAPES AND SECTIONS , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN HOT-ROLLED OR EXTRUDED , OTHER*

73.15 B VII B ) 2 BB ) *SHEETS AND PLATES , NOT FURTHER WORKED THAN COLD-ROLLED , OF A THICKNESS OF LESS THAN 3 MM