EU takes steps to unblock China textiles
(AP)
Updated: 2005-08-30 07:29

The actual number of 2005 imports is likely to be much higher.

Chief U.S. textile negotiator David Spooner is due in Beijing on Tuesday to start two days of talks on the textile trade.

U.S. clothing and textile manufacturers are pushing for an agreement to halt the surge in Chinese imports. U.S. producers say 19 textile plants have closed and 26,000 jobs have been lost in the industry since the beginning of the year.

The Bush administration already has granted a number of petitions filed by U.S. manufacturers to impose so-called safeguard controls in various categories of clothing, including cotton trousers and underwear, to cap growth at 7.5 percent a year.

The United States is allowed to re-impose quotas under the safeguard provisions that were included when China was granted membership in the World Trade Organization in 2001.

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