In fact, what we're looking for, after 3% real growth this year, is somewhere around 2.25% next year, with the U.S. being about a 0.25% below Canada's growth. It means that in terms of nominal GDP growth we may in fact be hard-pressed to reach 4% to 4.5%, and far less likely to reach 5%.

The value of the harvest to be compensated is calculated on the basis of the market prices for previous harvest years and the market price for the year in which the losses took place; the latter market price is set by the advisory committee for harvest losses on the basis of available market price information.

In these circumstances, the potential alert threshold should be deemed to have been reached when the price of crude oil on the spot markets is such that, if the price is maintained at this level for 12 months, the external oil bill of the European Union over the following 12 months would be increased by an amount equivalent to more than half of one percent of the GDP of the European Union in the preceding year as compared with the average external oil bill over the last five years.

The Commission's proposal, therefore, is the grant of a flat-rate aid to producers' organizations which introduce market intervention measures provided they fix and operate throughout the fish marketing year a withdrawal price that does not exceed a certain percentage of the average price recorded on the markets of the Member State concerned over the previous three years.

- 10 - F. Tobacco - Refinement of the grouping of 34 Community varieties according to clear criteria (market situation and consignment to intervention) in order to establish five groups composed of varieties of differing natures. - Sharper modulation than in previous years between the various groups of varieties as regards the norm prices and the premiums. Group Norm price Premiums I + 3 + 5 II + 0 + 3 III + 2 + 2 IV - 4 - 2 V -10 - 8 G. Milk In the light of the decisions adopted last December: ] - the intervention facility for salted butter to be discontinued on 1.4.1988.

Whereas it is necessary to fix minimum export prices in good time so that professional growers can make their arrangements ; whereas when these prices are being fixed export promotion measures adopted by the Member States in previous years should be taken into account ; whereas in addition, account should be taken of prices on international markets;