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Switzerland:GAFTT strongly endorsed US to self-initiate
textile and clothing safeguard actions against China |
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2005-3-14
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96 Trade Groups from 54 Countries Supporting the Principles of the Istanbul Declaration - Fair Trade for a Safer World
International Textile Coalition Calls for EU to Approve China Safeguard Petitions
Strongly Supports U.S. Textile Industry Demand For United States to Self-Initiate China Safeguards
The Global Alliance for Fair Textile Trade (GAFTT) voiced strong support for the twelve textile and clothing safeguard petitions filed by Euratex with the European Union on March 10. In addition, GAFTT strongly endorsed the U.S. textile industry''s March 11 call for the United States to self-initiate textile and clothing safeguard actions against China.
"With increases of imports from China of more than 100, 500 and even 1,000 percent in key textile and clothing categories to the European Union and the United States, industries in developing countries are at severe risk from being overwhelmed in the marketplace in a matter of months by China," said Ziya Sukun, Executive Director of the ITKIB Association of New York, a trade association representing Turkish textile and clothing interests.
"Without the swift implementation of safeguards by the European Union and the United States, millions of textile and clothing manufacturing workers worldwide will lose their jobs. The safeguards are more than simple measures to protect domestic industries, but rather critical measures designed to protect the export markets of a substantial portion of the developing world," continued Sukun.
GAFTT also welcomed a submission by the government of Tunisia at today''s World Trade Organization (WTO) formal Council on Trade in Goods (CTG) meeting during the textile portion of the proceedings. GAFTT believes that the paper can help address certain policy issues driving the crisis in global textile and clothing trade.
"Not only have we seen sudden surges in textile and clothing exports from China, but inexplicable declines in prices on products in sensitive categories of 50 percent or more," said Lloyd Wood of the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition (AMTAC).
"Solving the global textile crisis requires a comprehensive solution. We need policy measures in addition to safeguards that address some of the root causes of the textile crisis like a single country intentionally destabilizing prices through the use of unfair subsidies to drive other countries out of the market," concluded Wood.
The Global Alliance for Fair Trade in Textiles (GAFTT) is comprised of 96 trade groups from 54 countries, including the signatories of the Istanbul Declaration. The countries represented more than $170 billion in textile and apparel export trade in 2004. |
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| The Global Alliance for Fair Textile Trade |
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