OMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
C0MC89) 438 final 
Brussels, 18 September 1989 
Proposal for a 
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temporarily suspending the autonomous common customs tariff duties 
on a number of agricultural products 
'(presented by the Commission) 
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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 
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1. In the second quater of this year the Commission, with the assistance of the 
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Economic Tariff Questions Group, examined all the requests submitted by the 
Member States for temporary suspension of common customs tariff duties, 
including requests for the prolongation of suspensions currently in force. 
2. The attached proposal concerns a number of agricultural products. 
The proposal for industrial products is being prepared. 
3. The principle followed, when examining the requests for suspension, was to 
grant total suspension where Community production of the product in question 
is minimal or non-existent, and partial suspension where Community production 
only partially caters for Community requirements. For the latter, the rate of 
suspension varies according to the supply possibilities open to users within 
the Community. 
In this way, the Commission seeks to keep a balance between the interests 
of producers, users and consumers. Moreover, the need to safeguard jobs 
within the Community has been constantly borne in mind. 
4. Given the criteria listed above, the Commission feels that suspension of 
duty is justified only for the products listed in the Annex to the attached 
draft Regulation. 
5. As stated in Article 1 of the draft Regulation, the proposal will be valid for 
a period of 6 months. 
6. Particular attention is drawn to the fact that, in order to apply it properly, 
this Regulation must be published at least two months before entering into 
force. 
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Draft proposal for a 
COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 
of 1989 /89 
temporarily suspending the autonomous Common Customs Tariff duties on a 
number of agricultural products 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 28 
thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Whereas production in the Community of the products 
specified in this Regulation is currently inadequate or 
non-existent ; whereas producers thus cannot meet the 
needs of user industries in the Community ; 
Whereas in certain cases it is in the interest of the 
Community to suspend the autonomous Common 
Customs Tariff duties only partially, particularly since the 
goods in question are produced in the Community and in 
the other cases to suspend them totally; 
Whereas, in view of the difficulty of assessing accurately 
short-term trends in the economic situation in the relevant sectors, suspension measures should be taken 
only temporarily by fixing their period of validity by 
reference to the interests of Community production, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION : 
Article 1 
The autonomous Common Customs Tariff duties for the 
products listed in the Annex hereto shall be suspended at 
the level indicated against each of them. 
These suspensions shall be valid 
from 1 January to 30 June 1990. 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January '990, 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member 
States. 
Done at Brussels, 1989. 
For the Council 
The President 
3 
ANNEX 
3. 
3 Autonomous 
CN code Description of goods duties 
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ex 0302 6520 Piked dogfish (Squalus acantbias), fresh, chilled or frozen 6 
ex 0303 7520 
ex 0304 10 98 
ex 0304 90 98 
ex 0302 69 95 Red Snapper (Lutjanus Purpureus), fresh>chilled or frozen 0 
ex 0303 79 99 for processing (a) (b) 
ex 1212 20 00 Seaweeds and other algae, for the processing industry, other than for the production 
of animal fodder (a) 0 
(a) Control of the use for this special purpose shall be carried out pursuant to the relevant Community provisions. 
(b) The suspension shall apply to fish intended to undergo any operation unless they are intended to undergo exclusively one or more of the following opera­
tions: 
— cleaning, gutting, tailing, heading, 
— cutting (excluding, filleting or cutting of frozen blocks), 
— sampling, sorting, , 
— labelling, 
— packing, 
— chilling, 
— freezing, 
— deep freezing, 
— thawing, separation. 
The suspension is not allowed for products intended, in addition, to undergo treatment (or operations) qualifying for suspension where such treatment (or 
operations) is (are) carried out at retail or catering level. The suspension of customs duties shall apply only to fish intended for human consumption. 
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IMPACT ON COMPETITION AND EMPLOYMENT 
1. The subject of the annexed proposal for a Regulation is the suspension 
of the autonomous common customs tariff duties for a number of 
agricultural products. 
2. In this manner, the needs of user-industries, including small and 
medium-sized enterprises, will be met. 
a,; 
3. This measure, in addition to maint«'ning the competitive capacity 
of those industries, is likely to safeguard and/or improve employment. 
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FICHE FINANCIERE 
1. Ligne budgétaire concernée : Chap. 12 art. 120 
2. Intitulé de l'action : Projet de proposition de 
règlement du Conseil portant suspension temporaire des 
droits autonomes du tarif douanier commun pour un 
certain nomore de produits agricoles. 
3. Base juridique : Art. 28 du Traité-CEE 
4. Objectif de l'action : Suspension des droits du T.D.C 
pour les produits susvisés. 
5. Coût de 1'action : 
à la charge du budget de la CE : 
Evaluation rendue difficile, faute de statistiques 
communautaires précises. 
non-perception des droits : 
Une pondération établie à partir des données fournies 
par certains Etats membres fait ressortir un coût 
approximatif pour l'action pendant la période du 1.1.1990 au 
30.06.1990, d'environ 2.800.000 Ecus. 
G 
EN ISSN 0254-1475 
COM (89) 438 final 
DOCUMENTS 
02 03 
Catalogue number : CB-CO-89-393-EN-C 
ISBN 92-77-52795-1 
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities 
L-2985 Luxembourg