US to consider strict quotas on Chinese imports

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, an interagency group headed by the U.S. Department of Commerce, launched an investigation Monday on whether imports of Chinese-made goods in some categories have disrupted the U.S. market.

The move came responding to the industry complaints and a tripling in the rate of mill closures in US.

Textile groups and their allies in Congress have been pressuring the Bush administration to slap emergency curbs on mainland exports, which they say are poised to overrun the US market following the end of a decades-old quota system January 1.

If it determines there has been disruption, the government can impose quotas on Chinese goods or start negotiating voluntary quotas with the Middle Kingdom. Retailers worry new quotas could drive up prices and cut into their bottom lines.

A notice concerning the safeguard filings will be published in the Federal Register in the next few days. Then the committee will have up to 60 days to consider whether Chinese imports in those categories should be subject to stricter quotas.

Chinese textile imports have risen dramatically since Jan. 1, according to statistics released Friday by the Commerce Department.

The data shows that imports of cotton knit shirts and blouses increased 1,250 percent during the first quarter, compared with the first period of 2004. Cotton trouser imports grew 1,500 percent, and underwear imports increased 300 percent.

“There is no reason to believe that imports from China are causing market disruption,'’ said Laura Jones, executive director of the US Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel, in a statement before the Bush administration announcement.

The preliminary import figures show that imports from some other Asian suppliers such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and South Korea decreased in January through March as much as imports from the mainland have risen, she said.

China on Tuesday criticized a U.S. plan to try to re-impose textile quotas in order to protect American manufacturers, calling it unfair and a violation of free trade.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, said that the US was trying to blame its trading partners for the problems suffered by the country’s domestic manufacturers. The plan to re-impose quotas is unfair and a protectionist measure in violation of free trade norms, he added.