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The original report of the Committee of Experts contemplated that inconvertible currencies would be held unused until general convertibility was restored. It was suggested in general discussion, however, that the disadvantages of such accumulation could be mitigated to the extent that these currencies could be used for purchases, in the soft currency areas before the restoration of general convertibility. This would, however, in the main, be for the purchase of commodities which would ordinarily earn hard currency, and thus prejudice the individual effort to secure equilibrium on current hard currency accounts. The proposals also involve sales at concessional hard currency prices through an international organization. In view of the hard currency shortage, purchases of additional quantities of a surplus commodity could not take place on any appreciable scale without prejudicing the efforts of the importing countries to achieve equilibrium on hard currency account. The proposals both for sale in inconvertible currencies or at concessional prices assume that particular transactions between two countries in any commodity will be additional to the " normal volume of trade " in that commodity. It would be administratively difficult to determine the " normal volume of trade " in each case and, in practice, such transactions might prejudice the normal trade in particular commodities and the interests of other exporting and importing countries. The creation of any new international organization is undesirable unless it can be shown to be essential to carry out functions that cannot be performed equally well by an existing organization or by member Governments. The financial functions proposed for the ICCH could be performed by the Governments directly involved. The report of the Experts also envisaged certain longer-term functions for ICCH, one of the most important being the holding of buffer stocks after achievement of general convertibility. There are two principal objections to this proposal. In the first place the Conference shared the view of the Preparatory Commission on World Food Proposals that, where buffer stocks are appropriate, they " should be nationally held, but administered under internationally agreed rules." Furthermore, where any international co-ordination in regard to buffer stocks is desirable, it should, in general, be related to a commodity by commodity approach and to individual inter-governmental commodity agreements. Suggested Approach to the Problem It is convenient for the purpose of considering possible approaches to the solution of the agricultural surplus problem to consider separately (a) causes which are more or less directly related to the general currency difficulties now prevailing, and (b) all other causes. It is, however, recognized that in practice the surplus in most cases would arise from a combination of both.