Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 61 Part 5.djvu/45

 INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS OTHER THAN TREATIES [61 STAT. (b) Accordingly, when a substantial and widespread dis- equilibrium prevails in international trade and payments, a contracting party applying import restrictions under Article XII may relax such restrictions in a manner which departs from the provisions of Article XIII to the extent necessary to obtain additional imports above the maximum total of imports which it could afford in the light of the requirements of paragraph 2 of Article XII if its restrictions were fully consistent with the provisions of Article XIII, provided that (i) levels of delivered prices for products so imported are not established substantially higher than those ruling for comparable goods regularly available from other contracting parties, and that any excess of such price levels for products so imported is progressively reduced over a reasonable period; (ii) the contracting party taking such action does not do so as part of any arrangement by which the gold or convertible currency which the contracting party currently receives directly or indirectly from its exports to other contracting parties not party to the arrangement is appreciably reduced below the level it could otherwise have been reasonably expected to attain; (ill) such action does not cause unnecessary damage to the commercial or economic interests of any other contracting party. (c) Any contracting party taking action under this paragraph shall observe the principles of sub-paragraph (b) of this paragraph. A contracting party shall desist from transactions A44

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