A settlement could soon be reached in thedispute between European sugar producers and the European
Community over EC export licencing policies, Jean-Marc Vernes,
president of French sugar producer Beghin-Say, which is leading
the protest, told journalists today.
    "Our contacts with the EC authorities over the past few days
indicate that we are moving towards a solution," he said, adding
that if this happened the producers would withdraw the 854,000
tonnes of sugar they have offered into intervention.
    Vernes said that the protest, involving 770,000 tonnes of
sugar from French producers alone, was prompted by the EC's
policy since mid-1986 of offering export rebates which failed
to give producers an equivalent price to that they would obtain
by offering sugar into EC intervention.
    At last week's tender the EC Commission made an apparent
concession by offering a maximum rebate only 1.3 European
currency units (Ecus) per 100 kilos below the level producers
say is needed, compared with the previous week's rebate which
was 2.5 Ecus below the necessary level.
    Vernes would not say what form any compromise between the
producers and the EC would take, but he reaffirmed the
long-term desire of producers to export to the world market,
providing they were not losing money by doing so.
    Producers can withdraw their intervention offer after April
1, when the sugar will officially enter intervention stores, or
at any time over the following five weeks before the official
payment date.
    The EC has threatened to put the sugar back on the internal
market if the producers refuse to withdraw their offers.
 REUTER
