PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DECISION CONCERNING THE PROVISIONAL APPLICATION OF AN AGREED MINUTE MODIFYING THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY AND HONG KONG ON TRADE IN TEXTILE PRODUCTS
Date: 1989-10-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Hong Kong, textile product, trade agreement (EU)

COMMISSION  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

C0MC89) 522 final 

Brussels, 20 October 1989 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning  the provisional  application of an Agreed  Minute modifying 

the Agreement  between the European  Economic  Community and Hong  Kong 

on trade in textile products 

(presented by the Commission) 

EXPLANATORY  MBCRA1PIM 

1. The attached Council proposal concerns the adjustment of the quotas for 
categories 4, 5, 7 and 63, agreed on with Hong Kong during the negotiations 
on the bilateral textile agreement, following the introduction of the 
Harmonized System. 

2. It Is proposed that the above-xoentloned amendment to the bilateral 
agreement with Hong Kong on trade In textile products should be applied 
provisionally with effeot from 1 January 1989. 

3. The amendment Is set out In the agreed minute initialled on 13 June 
following the consultations held with Hong Kong on this matter. 

It Involves Increasing the quota for oategory 5 by a quantity negotiated on 
the basis of the trade recorded in 1988 for products newly incorporated in 
that oategory following the entry into foroe of the Harmonized System and 
reducing the quotas for categories 4, 7 and 83 by equivalent quantities. 

4. The Council is requested to adopt a decision concerning the provisional 
application of the abovementioned amendment to the bilateral trade 
agreement with Hong Kong. 

-  2  -

PROPOSAL FOR A OCCNCIL DBCISICN 
ON THE PROVISIONAL APPLICATION OF At? AGREED MINUTE 
AMENDING THE ASSEOIENT BETWEEN  THE EDRQPEAN ECONOMIC  COMMDNITÏ 

AND HONG  KONG  ON TRADE  IN TEXTILE  PRODUCTS 

Consultations were held between the Community and Hong Kong on  13 June  1969 
at Hong Kong's request, and it was agreed at  these consultations that  the 
quota adjustment agreed on during the renegotiation of the abovementioned 
agreement should be made. 

The Commission has set out In this document  the reasons  justifying  the 
amendment and requests the Council to adopt a decision on the provisional 
application of the amendment  to the bilateral trade agreement  with 
nififlfltf Kong* 

* 

1. When, in 1986, the bilateral multifltare textile agreements were 
renegotiated,  oertain quantitative limits were adjusted  to allow for  the 
classification changes made by  the Community with a view to  the 
introduction of the Harmonized System.  Certain additional adjustments must 
be made following the entry Into f oroe of the Combined  Nomenclature  on 
1 January  1988. 

2.  Since 1 January  1989, the quota for category 5 has covered  certain 
products in categories 4, 7 and 83. In order to ensure the neutrality  of 
the conversion from the OCT and Nlmexe to the Combined  Nomenclature, 
categories 8, 4, 7 and 83 should be  adjusted. 

3. At Hong Kong's request, consultations were held in Brussels on 13 June 
in order to settle the matter. 

- 3 -

With the Member States' help, the Commission agreed with Hong Kong to 
increase the oategory 5 quota and to reduce the oategory 4, 7 and 83 quotas 
by equivalent amounts negotiated on the basis of trade in 1988. 

4. An agreed minute containing the aiove-mentioned amendments to be made to 
the bilateral agreement was initialled on 13 June 1989 (see Annex). 

5. The Commission therefore proposes to the Council that it take a decision 
to apply provisionally the agreed minute Initialled on 13 June 1989 
amending the bilateral agreement on trade in textiles initialled by the 
Community and Hong Kong on 2 October 1986 pending the formal conclusion of 
the agreement and of the above-mentioned minute and subject to provisional 
application by Hong Kong on a reciprocal basis. 

y 

y4 S 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning  the provisional  application of an Agreed  Minute modifying 
the Agreement between the European  Economic  Community and Hong  Kong 
on trade in textile products 

THE COUNCIL OF THE  EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European 
Economic  Community,  and.  in  particular  Article  113 
thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal  from the Commission, 

4(A 

Whereas,  pending  the  completion  of  the  procedures 
necessary  for  its  conclusion,  the  Agreement  between  the 
European Economic Community and Hong Kong on trade in 
textile  products,  initialled  on  2  October  1986,  has  been 
provisionally applied since 1 January 1987 in accordance, for 
the Community's part, with Decision  88/213/EEC (»); 

Whereas  that  Agreement  provides  for  the  possibility  of 
quantitative adjustments to the quotas for certain categories, 
in  order  to  allow  the  introduction  of  the  combined 
nomenclature; 

Whereas  following  consultations  between  the  Community 
S  H-."V  and Hong Kons an Agreed Minute modifying the quotas of 
products provided for in the Agreement 

\  n-2  catégorie*  * 

was initialled on  \  "Ç  "^"«AWSC-  *^%*\ ' 

Article  1 

Pending the completion  of  the procedures necessary  for its 
conclusion, the Agreed Minute modifying the Agreement on 
trade  in textile products  between  the  European  Economic 
Community and Hong Kong shall be applied provisionally in 
the Community, • 
. provided 
that there is reciprocal provisional application on the part of 
Hong Kong-s»j  >W  cV^ocV  X H « ~^ 

*•  Jv^^^^^H 

\<*2 

The  text  of  the  Agreed  Minute  is  attached  to  this 
Decision. 

Article 2 

The  Commission  is  invited  to  seek  the  agreement  of  the 
Government of Hong Kong on the provisional application of 
the Agreed Minute referred to in Article  1 and to notify the 
Council thereof. 

Whereas pending the completion of the procedures necessary 
for the conclusion of the Agreement and the Agreed Minute, 
the  Agreed  Minute  should  be  applied  provisionally, 

Done at Brussels, 

. 

. .. 

provided  that  there  is  a 
reciprocal  provisional  application  on  tne  part  of  Hong 
•*•  ^o^vjoca 
Kong,  ^ 

« S ^ - v\  V<©>«- 

, NV 

^~ 

For the  Council 

\  <\%<\ 

(')  OJ No L 97, 14. 4. 1988, p. 1. 

AGREED MINUTE 

A delegation of the Hong Kong Government and a delegation of the 
European Community met in Brussels on 13 June 1989 for 
consultations on problems arising  from the adoption, following 
introduction of the Harmonised  Syste-i, of clarification by the 
CCC that short knitted garments with ribbing at the bottom should 
be classified under Category 5, and the pursuant change adopted 
by the EC to classify these garments under Category. The 
consultations were conducted  in accordance with Article 14(3) of 
the Agreement on Trade in Textile Products between Hong Kong and 
the Community  initialled on 2 October 1986 in Brussels. 

2. As a result of the consultations and having regard to the 

migration of short knitted garments with ribbing at the bottom 
from Categories 4, 7 and F 3 to Category 5, the two parties agreed 
to add the following quantities to the quantitative limits for 
Category 5 established  in Annex II of the said Agreement : 

1989 
1990 
1991 

108.000 
109.000 
110.000 

3. It was further agreed that the regional shares for Category 5 for 
the year 1989 will be increased  in consequence of the additional 
quantity  for Category 5 referred to in paragraph 2 above by the 
following quantities : 

Region 

FRG 
FRA 
UK 
IRE 

Additional Quantity 
in 1000 pieces 

7 
3 
94 
4 

/  • 

- 2 -

4. As regards the regional shares for Categories  4, 7 and 83 for the 

year 1989, it was agreed that they will be decreased in 
consequence of the quantities to be deducted  from Category 5 
referred to in paragraph  3 above by the following quantities : 

(1000 pieces) 

FRG 

FRA 

UK 

IRE 

Cat. 4 

Cat. 7 

4

-

34 

3 

Cat. 83  (tonnes) 

11 

Brussels, 13 June 1989. 

Delegation of the Hong Kong 

Delegation of the European 

Government 

Economic Con?nunity 

-* &S--

y\ 

<'7 

>  Oh1! 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM (89) 522 final 

DOCUMENTS 

n 

EN 

Catalogue number : CB-CO-89-476-EN-C 

ISBN 92-77-53915-1 

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