Trade Agreements Act Of 1962

Summary of Trade Agreements Act Of 1962

An act that authorized the president, during the period of July 1, 1962, through June 30, 1967, to reduce or eliminate certain tariffs in return for similar concessions on the part of other trading nations. The act was largely in response to the elimination of internal duties by members of the European Economic Community. The act empowered the president, inter alia, to reduce by up to 50 percent duties in effect at the commencement of the act, to eliminate duties under 5 percent, and to eliminate duties on certain agricultural products in return for the likely maintenance or expansion of U.S. exports. Any such reductions were to be implemented in at least five installments, a year apart. The act served as a basis for the Kennedy Round (read this and related legal terms for further details) discussions.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)