Warnings against Chinese textile unfounded: UN report

Warnings from industry and labor groups last year that cheap Chinese clothing and textile would crush producers in other countries have so far proven unfounded, according to a United Nations report issued at a conference which ended on Wednesday.

In the report, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said that job losses from the lifting of global trade quotas in the textile industry on Jan. 1 this year had been lower than forecast.

"The dire consequences that were predicted, at least up until now, have not occurred," said Sally Paxton, official of the UN labor agency.

The report showed that although China's textile exports rose 20 percent in value and China's share of the global market had grown three percentage points to nearly 16 percent from January, a number of European Union members and Asian countries had also boosted exports and their global share.

Italy had boosted the dollar value of its largely up market products by 9 percent, and held a global market share of 8.5 percent. Germany saw the value of its sales rise by nearly 3 percent, and its share of global market is nearly 8 percent.

Japan, with 4 percent of the global market, saw the value of its exports go up by 2.8 percent. Turkey boosted sales by 11.5 percent in the dollar value and increased its global market share to 2.8 percent.

Small developing economies like Bangladesh, Cambodia and Morocco had not suffered so far from the changes as much as they had feared, said ILO textile industry specialist Jean-Paul Sajhau.

Xinhuanet.com