1. Reducing the rate existing on July 1, 1958 by not more than 20 percent, provided that no more than a 10 percent reduction may be made effective in any one year.

2. Reducing the rate existing on July 1, 1958 by not more than 2 percentage points ad valorem (or its ad valorem equivalent, in the case of a specific rate or a combination of ad valorem and specific rates). The reduction in any one year under this alternative may not exceed 1 percentage point.

3. Reducing to 50 percent ad valorem or its equivalent a rate which is in excess of that level, provided that not more than one-third of the total reduction may become effective in any one year.

The issuance of the notice of intention to negotiate and the list of products which may be considered in such negotiations, together with related notices issued by the Committee for Reciprocity Information (CRI) and the United States Tariff Commission, sets in motion the usual domestic procedures for obtaining full information in preparation for negotiations. The related notices concern (a) CRI arrangements for the submission of oral and written views on the forthcoming negotiations, and (b) the Tariff Commission's arrangements for public hearings in connection with its "peril point" investigation of the extent to which concessions on listed products in the United States tariff may be made without causing or threatening serious injury to a domestic industry producing like or directly competitive products.

The United States will grant no concession on any product not included in this or a subsequent published list. Appearance of a product on the public list is exclusively for the purpose of affording interested persons an opportunity to present their views on the possibility of a concession; it does not carry with it the implication that a concession will in fact be offered or made on the product.

Domestic producers, importers and other interested persons are invited to present their views as to whether concessions should or should not be made on products on the published import list together with all possible pertinent information about such products.

Submissions may also be presented to assist in compliance with the policy recommended in the President's message to the Congress of March 30, 1954 relating to avoidance of concessions on products made by workers receiving wages which are substandard in the exporting country which is the principal supplier.

All views and information will be carefully considered in arriving at a decision on each product as to whether or not a concession should be made by the United States.

The list of export products, issued separately today in Department of State publication No. 6987, on which the United States will request tariff concessions from other countries is a preliminary one on which the interdepartmental trade agreements organization would welcome views of interested persons. In order to make the negotiations as meaningful as possible for domestic producers and exporters, the organization would appreciate receiving views on products to be added to or deleted from the export list, the countries from which concessions should be requested for particular products, and the extent to which existing customs treatment should be modified to permit development of trade in those markets.

Details concerning the submission of briefs and applications to be heard on concessions which the United States might either grant or obtain are contained in the notice of the Committee for Reciprocity Information which is attached to this release. The hearings before the Committee will open on July 11, 1960. Applications for oral presentation of views and information should be made to the Committee not later than close of business June 27, 1960. Persons desiring to be heard should also submit written briefs or statements to the Committee by the close of business June 27, 1960. Only those persons will be heard who presented written briefs or statements and filed applications to be heard by the date indicated.

The United States Tariff Commission also announced today that it would hold public hearings beginning July 11, 1960 in connection with its "peril point" investigation, as required by section 3(a) of the Trade Agreements Extension Act of 1951, as amended, on the extent to which United States

concessions on listed products may be made in the negotiations without causing or threatening serious injury to a domestic industry producing like or directly competitive products. Copies of the notice of the Tariff Commission may be obtained from the Commission.

Views and information received by the Tariff Commission in its hearings referred to above will be made available to the Committee for Reciprocity Information for consideration by the Interdepartmental Committee on Trade Agreements and the Trade Policy Committee. Persons whose interests relate only to import products included in the list published today, and who have appeared before the Tariff Commission need not--but may if they wish-- appear also before the Committee for Reciprocity Information, if they apply in accordance with the procedures of that Committee, as outlined above.

Persons desiring to suggest items, either import or export, additional to those in the lists for consideration in the negotiations should present their views to the Committee for Reciprocity Information. As mentioned above, if any additional items are considered for the granting of concessions by the United States, they will be the subject of a further public notice and no concession will be made without such notice.

INTERDEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE ON TRADE AGREEMENTS

Trade-Agreement Negotiations under the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

Pursuant to Section 4 of the Trade Agreements Act approved June 12, 1934, as amended (43 Stat. 945, ch. 474; 65 Stat. 73, ch. 11), and to paragraph 4 of Executive Order 10082 of October 5, 1949, as amended (3 CFR, 1949-1953 Comp., pp. 281355), notice is hereby given by the Interdepartmental Committee on Trade Agreements of intention to conduct trade agreement negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade with foreign governments which are contracting parties to that agreement and with the Covernments of Israel, Spain, Switzerland and Tunisia, or with instrumentalities of any such foreign governments, and including in each case areas in respect of which such governments or instrumentalities thereof have authority to conduct trade agreement negotiations. It is proposed to enter into negotiations with these governments or instrumentalities for the purpose of negotiating mutually advantageous tariff or other trade concessions to be embodied in schedules to be applied under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. It is anticipated that contracting parties or instrumentalities there of will also negotiate, under provisions of the Agreement, compensatory adjustments in relation to action taken or to be taken with respect to existing concessions, such as, but not limited to, (i) the granting by the European Economic Community, under paragraph 6 of Article XXIV, of concessions compensatory for increases in duties, beyond those now permitted by the schedules of members of the Community, resulting from formation of the common external tariff of the Community, and (ii) the continuation of negotiations, previously announced and commenced by the United States under Article XIX, for the granting of concessions compensatory for certain escape clause action taken under that Article.

There is annexed here to a list of articles imported into the United States to be considered for possible modification of duties or other import restrictions, imposition of additional import restrictions, or specific continuance of existing customs or excist treatment in the trade agreement negotiations of which notice is given above.