WHEAT

The Uruguay Round agriculture agreement will establish disciplines in the areas of market access, export subsidies, internal support, and sanitary and phytosanitary measures. In addition, countries have made a number of commitments that will benefit U.S. agricultural exports. Highlights for the U.S. wheat industry, whose 1992 exports totaled $4.5 billion and accounted for 53% of total domestic production, include the following:

Key Developments for U.S. Exports:

• EU Cuts Export Subsidies: The European Union will reduce the quantity and budgetary outlay for export subsidies from the current level. In the year 2000, the EU's maximum allowable quantity of subsidized wheat and wheat flour exports will be 13,436,000 tons, 6,800,000 tons less than the quantity of subsidized exports in 1991-92.
• EU Maintains Access Opportunities: The European Union will preserve import access opportunities for wheat by fixing the relationship between the duty-paid import price and the support price.
• Japan Expands Current Access: Japan will expand its current 5,530,000 ton tariff-rate quota for wheat by 35,000 tons annually, for a final tariff-rate quota of 5,740,000 tons in the year 2000. Japan will also reduce its state-trading mark-up on wheat by 15% over the implementation period.
• Korea Reduces Tariffs: Korea will reduce the tariff on wheat, other than durum, from the current applied rate of 3% to a final rate of 1.8%. Korea will also reduce the tariff on wheat flour from the current applied rate of 7% to a final rate of 4.2%.
• Morocco Guarantees Access: Morocco will establish a tariff-rate quota that will ensure continued access for 1.5 million tons of wheat.
• Tunisia Guarantees Access: Tunisia will establish a 300,000-ton tariff-rate quota for durum wheat and a 600,000-ton quota for other wheat, both with 17% in- quota duties.

U.S. Commitments:

• Market Access: The United States will reduce its tariffs for wheat and wheat seed by 55%, and for durum wheat by the minimum required 15%, in equal annual installments over 6 years, beginning in 1995.
  • Durum wheat: Base duty of 0.77 cents/kg reduced to 0.65 cents/kg
  • Wheat seed and meslin: Base duty of 6.3% reduced to 2.8%
  • Other wheat and meslin: Base duty of 0.77 cents/kg reduced to 0.35 cents/kg 
  • Export Subsidies: The United States will establish quantity and budgetary outlay ceilings for subsidized exports wheat, durum, wheat flour and semolina. The final year commitments are the required 21% and 36% below the 1986-90 base for the quantitative and budgetary commitments, respectively. Reductions will begin from the 1991-92 average levels. The annual allowable quantities and expenditures will be the following:

   

  	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000
  Quantity (1,000 tons)	20,238	19,095	17,952	16,809	15,665	14,522
  Budget ($1,000)	765,499	685,162	604,825	524,488	444,152	363,815

   

  (Note: This fact sheet is a summary of Uruguay Round highlights; it does not reflect all results.)
  June 1994

Last modified: Friday, November 18, 2005