US embassy cable - 05VIENNA534

UNCLAS VIENNA 000534 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: ETRD, AU, WTO 
SUBJECT: WTO NON-AGRICULTURAL MARKET ACCESS SECTORS (NAMA): 
 
 
INPUT FROM AUSTRIA 
 
REFS: (A) STATE 17096; (B) 03 VIENNA 819 
 
1.  All non-agricultural Austrian manufacturers and 
 
industries are mandatory members of the Austrian Economic 
 
Chamber (WKO).  The WKO is in the best position to comment 
 
on which sectors are interested in sectoral tariff 
 
liberalization negotiations.  WKO WTO Specialist Susanne 
 
Schrott told us that presently, no sector is willing to 
 
start talks on this issue.  Schrott added, however, that the 
 
WKO is currently soliciting the views of industry members 
 
regarding NAMA tariff liberalization.  She promised to 
 
provide us a list of interested industries as soon as it is 
 
available.  Contact information: Susanne Schrott, Foreign 
 
Trade and WTO expert at the WKO, phone: +43-0590900-4211, e- 
 
mail: susanne.schrott@wko.at. 
 
2.  Another influential industry lobby group, which has 
 
expressed interest in WTO-NAMA progress, is the Austrian 
 
Association of Industrialists (IV).  Contact information: 
 
Michael Loewy, Secretary for International Relations, phone: 
 
+43-1-71135-2412, e-mail: m.loewy@iv-net.at. 
 
3.  Schrott told us that one area in which the Austrians are 
 
definitely interested in reducing or eliminating tariffs is 
 
the export of environmental technologies.  Companies that 
 
produce in these sectors are in one of two associations 
 
(also under the WKO umbrella): the Association of Chemical 
 
Industries, Managing Director Dr. Wolfgang Eickhoff, phone: 
 
+43-0590900-3371, e-mail: office@fcio.wko.at; and the 
 
Association of Machinery and Steel Industries, Managing 
 
Director Dr. Berndt-Thomas Krafft, phone: +43-0590900-3482, 
 
e-mail: krafft@fmmi.at. 
 
4.  Previous discussions (ref B) revealed that the clothing 
 
and textiles industries are the strongest opponents of 
 
tariff reductions.  Contact info: Association of the 
 
Clothing Industry, Managing Director: Dr. Franz Pitnik, 
 
phone: +43-0590900-4903, e-mail: pitnik@fashion-industry.at; 
 
and the Association of the Textiles Industry, Managing 
 
Director: Dr. Wolfgang Zeyringer, phone: +43-1-53337-260, e- 
 
mail: FVTextil@FVTextil.wk.or.at. 
 
BROWN