COUNCIL DECISION of 21 December 1988 concerning the provisional application of the Agreed Minute modifying the Agreement between the European Economic Community and Hong Kong on trade in textile products (88/666/EEC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

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

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

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 (1);

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 and Hong Kong an Agreed Minute modifying the quotas of category 7 and 78 products provided for in the Agreement was initialled on 29 July 1988;

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, with effect from 1 January 1988, provided that there is a reciprocal provisional application on the part of Hong Kong,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

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, with effect from 1 January 1988, provided that there is reciprocal provisional application on the part of Hong Kong.

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.

Done at Brussels, 21 December 1988.

For the Council

The President

V. PAPANDREOU

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

1. A delegation of the Hong Kong Government and a delegation of the European Community met in Brussels on 27 July 1988 for consultations on problems arising fr6m the adoption, following introduction of the harmonized system, of the revised definitions of blouses, both knitted and woven, as set out in the explanatory notes to the combined nomenclature (CN) Chapters 61 and 62 concerning shirts, shirt-blouses and blouses for women or girls (category 7). 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 woven tops with shoulder straps and woven tops without opening from category 78 to category 7, the two parties agreed to add the following quantities to the quantitative limits for category 7 established in Annex II of the said Agreement:

Year Additional quantity´000

1988 632

1989 637

1990 642

1991 647

and to deduct the following quantities from the quantitative limits for category 78 established in Annex II of the said Agreement:

Year Quantity to be deductedTonnes

1988 52

1989 52

1990 53

1991 53

3. It was further agreed that the regional shares for category 7 for the year 1988 as indicated in the Annex to the Community's Note Verbale No 02728 dated 4 March 1988 will be increased in consequence of the additional quantity for category 7 referred to in paragraph 2 above by the following quantities:

Region Additional quantity´000

D 417

F 61

I 1

BNL 19

UK 133

DEN 1

4. As regards the regional shares for category 78 for the year 1988 as indicated in the Annex to the Community's Note Verbale No 02728 dated 4 March 1988, it was agreed that they will be decreased in consequence of the quantities to be deducted from category 78 referred to in paragraph 1 above by the following quantities:

Region >Quantity to be deductedTonnes

D 34

F 5

BNL 2

UK 11

Brussels, 28 July 1988.

Delegation of

the Hong Kong Governement

Delegation of the

European Economic Community