'.
591 THIS WORDING SHOWS THAT COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS WERE NOT REQUIRED TO INTRODUCE A SYSTEM OF EXPORT REFUNDS AND STILL LESS TO FIX THE AMOUNT THEREOF IN SUCH A WAY THAT IF SUGAR PRODUCERS EXPORT THEY OBTAIN THE INTERVENTION PRICE .
592 RT'S SUBMISSION CANNOT THEREFORE BE UPHELD .
593 ( D ) RT TAKES THE VIEW THAT ARTICLE 85 DOES NOT APPLY TO THE PRACTICES COMPLAINED OF, SINCE THE LATTER DID NOT RELATE TO THE MARKET FOR A PRODUCT BUT THE 'MARKET' FOR EXPORT LICENCES .
594 THIS ARGUMENT IS IRRELEVANT, SINCE THE ONLY QUESTION WHICH HAS TO BE ANSWERED IS WHETHER THE SAID PRACTICES, WHATEVER THEIR IMMEDIATE PURPOSE MAY HAVE BEEN, AIMED AT AND LED TO COMPETITION BEING IMPEDED WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET AND THIS QUESTION MUST BE ANSWERED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE .
595 THESE CONSIDERATIONS LEAD TO THE CONCLUSION THAT THE OBJECT AND EFFECT OF THE DISPUTED PRACTICES WERE, INTER ALIA, TO IMPEDE COMPETITION WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET AND, FOR THIS REASON, MIGHT AFFECT TRADE BETWEEN MEMBER STATES .
B - THE QUESTION WHETHER THE CONCERTED PRACTICES HAD AN APPRECIABLE EFFECT ON INTRA-COMMUNITY TRADE AND COMPETITION WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET
596 IN REPLY TO THE QUESTIONS PUT BY THE COURT THE APPLICANTS CALCULATED THAT THE SUGAR WHICH THEY EXPORTED IN 1970 AS A RESULT OF THE INVITATIONS TO TENDER AMOUNTED ALTOGETHER TO 89 821 METRIC TONS OF RAW SUGAR AND 248 833 METRIC TONS OF WHITE SUGAR, WHEREAS THE COMMISSION ESTIMATED THESE AMOUNTS TO BE 60 627 AND 207 239 METRIC TONS RESPECTIVELY AND WENT ON TO SAY THAT SUCRE-UNION AND LEBAUDY-SUC HAD EXPORTED 28 332 AND 17 125 METRIC TONS OF WHITE SUGAR RESPECTIVELY .
597 ACCORDING TO THE COMMISSION'S STATISTICS ( TABLES III AND IV OF ANNEX I TO THE REJOINDER IN CASE 47/73 ), TO THE EXTENT TO WHICH THEY ARE BASED ON THE DATA SUPPLIED BY FRANCE AND BELGIUM, THE FOLLOWING AMOUNTS WERE EXPORTED BY THESE TWO MEMBER STATES WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET :
1969/70 : RAW SUGAR : FRANCE : 1 800 BELGIUM : 13 900 TOTAL : 15 700
1969/70 : WHITE SUGAR : FRANCE : 298 600 BELGIUM : 87 100 TOTAL : 385 700
1970/71 : RAW SUGAR : FRANCE : 74 700 BELGIUM : 21 100 TOTAL : 95 800
1970/71 : WHITE SUGAR : FRANCE : 524 300 BELGIUM : 91 100 TOTAL : 615 400
598 ALL THIS STATISTICAL INFORMATION SHOWS THAT THE UNDERTAKINGS CONCERNED WERE ABLE TO EXPORT LARGE QUANTITIES TO THIRD COUNTRIES AS A RESULT OF THE CONCERTED ACTION TO WHICH EXCEPTION IS TAKEN, NOT ONLY IN ABSOLUTE TERMS, BUT ALSO IN COMPARISON WITH FRENCH AND BELGIAN EXPORTS WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET .
599 THE ONLY INFERENCE TO DRAW FROM THIS IS THAT, HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR THE CONCERTED ACTION, SOME OF THE UNDERTAKINGS CONCERNED WOULD HAVE BEEN FORCED TO SELL MORE SUGAR WITHIN THE COMMON MARKET AND THAT CONSEQUENTLY THE PATTERN OF INTRA-COMMUNITY TRADE AND THE DEGREE OF COMPETITION WITHIN THE COMMON