44.822/1:549/2 TO AUTHORIZE A CONTRIBUTION BY THE UNITED A BILL TO AUTHORIZE A CONTRIBUTION BY THE UNITED MAY 11, 1978 Printed for the use of the HOUSE COMMITTEE ON BANKING, FINANCE AND URBAN AFFAIRS HENRY S. REUSS, Wisconsin, Chairman THOMAS L. ASHLEY, Ohio CA માં પૂરા JAMES M. HANLEY, New York PARREN J. MITCHELL, Maryland District of Columbia STEPHEN L. NEAL, North Carolina PAUL E. TSONGAS, Massachusetts CLIFFORD ALLEN, Tennessee NORMAN E. D'AMOURS, New Hampshire STANLEY N. LUNDINE, New York EDWARD W. PATTISON, New York JOHN J. CAVANAUGH, Nebraska MARY ROSE OAKAR, Ohio JIM MATTOX, Texas BRUCE F. VENTO, Minnesota DOUG BARNARD, Georgia WES WATKINS, Oklahoma ROBERT GARCIA, New York J. WILLIAM STANTON, Ohio JOHN H. ROUSSELOT, California GEORGE HANSEN, Idaho HENRY J. HYDE, Illinois RICHARD KELLY, Florida CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa MILLICENT FENWICK, New Jersey NEWTON I. STEERS, JR., Maryland HAROLD C. HOLLENBECK, New Jersey S. WILLIAM GREEN, New York CONTENTS STATEMENTS Bosworth, Hon. Stephen W., Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for In- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR THE RECORD Bosworth, Hon. Stephen W., prepared statement_ Moorhead, Chairman William S., letter from Hon. Barry P. Bosworth, Di- rector, Council on Wage and Price Stability, dated May 1, 1978, in re- sponse to chairman's letter of April 14, 1978, re inflation impact on Questions submitted by subcommittee Chairman William S. Moorhead to Secretary Stephen W. Bosworth concerning U.S. participation in the Fifth International Tin Agreement, with the Secretary's response to American Mining Congress, letter from J. Allen Overton, Jr., president, dated May 16, 1978, enclosing a statement by Simon D. Strauss, chair- Statement of Lowell M. Hoffman, vice president, National Can Corp., before the Subcommittee on Military Construction and Stockpiles of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, March 9, 1978_. Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc., Washington, D.C., letter from C. (III) 178 TO AUTHORIZE A CONTRIBUTION BY THE UNITED STATES TO THE TIN BUFFER STOCK ESTABLISHED UNDER THE FIFTH INTERNATIONAL TIN AGREEMENT THURSDAY, MAY 11, 1978 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC STABILIZATION OF THE COMMITTEE ON BANKING, FINANCE AND URBAN AFFAIRS, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10:15 a.m. in room 2220 of the Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. William S. Moorhead (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Moorhead, Vento, and Kelly. Chairman MOORHEAD. Good morning. The Subcommittee on Economic Stabilization will please come to order. Today the subcommittee takes up legislatively for the first time the subject of international commodity agreements. We do so in our role as watchdog over the many-sided inflation problem, one aspect of which is prices of internationally traded raw materials. This being a first for us, I have permitted myself an opening statement that is slightly longer than is my custom. Last June, the subcommittee explored with witnesses from the State and Treasury Departments the new administration's emerging policy toward international commodity agreements. We learned that the policy had two key elements. First, there was to be a more sympathetic attitude by the United States toward these agreements than in the past, particularly those using the device of buffer stocks to stabilize prices. But second, the United States would sign such agreements only when they would contribute to a solution of our own domestic inflation problem; that is, agreements that could hold down prices in booms and not just hold them up when world demand was weak. The international tin agreement is the only one in existence so far that has an operating buffer stock. Unfortunately, it has not been successful in holding the price of tin below the agreed ceiling. The legislation before us is designed to make the tin agreement work better by increasing the size of the buffer stock, through a U.S. contribution of up to 5,000 tons of excess tin in our national stockpile. No one is making excessive claims for the anti-inflation payoff of this contribution. Obviously more important is a separate proposal, not before this subcommittee, for the United States to sell unilaterally a much larger quantity of excess stockpile tin. But still, the bill before us is important as an indication of administration and congressional attitudes toward international commodity agreements and the buffer stock mechanism. (1) |