[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 77 (Friday, April 21, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 19891]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-9906]



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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Request for Public Comments on Bilateral Textile Consultations on 
Cotton and Man-Made Fiber Underwear

April 17, 1995.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Notice.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Novak (Costa Rica, Turkey), 
Jennifer Tallarico (Dominican Republic), Jennifer Aldrich (Honduras) 
and Ross Arnold (Thailand), International Trade Specialists, Office of 
Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 482-4212. For 
information on categories for which consultations have been requested, 
call (202) 482-3740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Authority: Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended; 
section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 
1854).

    Under the terms of Article 6 of the Uruguay Round Agreement on 
Textiles and Clothing (ATC) and the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, the 
Government of the United States requested consultations with the 
Governments of Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Turkey and 
Thailand with respect to cotton and man-made fiber underwear in 
Categories 352/652. On March 29, 1995, CITA dropped its request for 
consultations with Thailand on Categories 352/652 that was made on 
November 28, 1994 (see 60 FR 2081, published on January 6, 1995) and 
recalled under Article 6 of the ATC.
    The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that, if no 
solution is agreed upon in consultations with the Governments of Costa 
Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Turkey and Thailand, the 
Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements may later 
establish a limit for the entry and withdrawal from warehouse for 
consumption of cotton and man-made fiber textile products in Categories 
352/652, produced or manufactured in the aforementioned countries and 
exported during the following twelve-month periods, beginning on the 
date of the request for consultations, at levels of not less than the 
specified amounts:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Restraint period                     Restraint level          
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Costa Rica                                                              
March 27, 1995-March 26, 1996......  14,423,178 dozen.                  
Dominican Republic                                                      
March 27, 1995-March 26, 1996......  16,442,148 dozen.                  
Honduras                                                                
March 27, 1995-March 26, 1996......  6,550,810 dozen.                   
Turkey                                                                  
March 28, 1995-March 27, 1996......  1,291,118 dozen.                   
Thailand                                                                
March 29, 1995-March 28, 1996......  1,586,005 dozen.                   
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    A statement of serious damage concerning Categories 352/652 follows 
this notice.
    Anyone wishing to comment or provide data or information regarding 
the treatment of Categories 352/652, or to comment on domestic 
production or availability of products included in Categories 352/652, 
is invited to submit 10 copies of such comments or information to Rita 
D. Hayes, Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile 
Agreements, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230; ATTN: 
Helen L. LeGrande. The comments received will be considered in the 
context of the consultations with the Governments of Costa Rica, the 
Dominican Republic, Honduras, Turkey and Thailand.
    Because the exact timing of the consultations is not yet certain, 
comments should be submitted promptly. Comments or information 
submitted in response to this notice will be available for public 
inspection in the Office of Textiles and Apparel, room H3100, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 
DC.
    Further comments may be invited regarding particular comments or 
information received from the public which the Committee for the 
Implementation of Textile Agreements considers appropriate for further 
consideration.
    The solicitation of comments regarding any aspect of the agreement 
or the implementation thereof is not a waiver in any respect of the 
exemption contained in 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1) relating to matters which 
constitute ``a foreign affairs function of the United States.''
    The United States remains committed to finding a solution 
concerning Categories 352/652. Should such a solution be reached in 
consultations with the Governments of Costa Rica, the Dominican 
Republic, Honduras, Turkey and Thailand, further notice will be 
published in the Federal Register.
    A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS 
numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories 
with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal 
Register notice 59 FR 65531, published on December 20, 1994).
Rita D. Hayes,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Statement of Serious Damage
Cotton and Manmade Fiber Underwear--Category 352/652
    The sharp and substantial increase in imports of cotton and manmade 
fiber underwear, Category 352/652, is causing serious damage to the 
U.S. industry producing cotton and manmade fiber underwear.
    Category 352/652 imports surged from 65,507,000 dozen in 1992 to 
79,962,000 dozen in 1993, a 22 percent increase. Cotton and manmade 
fiber underwear imports, Category 352/652, continued to increase in 
1994, reaching 97,375,000 dozen, 22 percent above the 1993 level and 49 
percent above the level imported in 1992.
    Serious damage to the domestic industry resulting from the sharp 
and substantial increase in imports of cotton and manmade fiber 
underwear is attributed to imports from the Dominican Republic, Costa 
Rica, Honduras, Thailand and Turkey\1\. The combination of high import 
levels, surging imports, and low priced goods from these countries have 
resulted in loss of domestic output, market share, investment, 
employment, and man-hours worked.

    \1\El Salvador and Colombia called under domestic legal 
authority. They are not WTO members.
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    Total imports from the five countries listed above increased from 
22,675,508 dozen in 1992 to 40,293,259 dozen in 1994, a sharp and 
substantial increase of 78 percent. As a group their imports were up 32 
percent in 1994 over their 1993 level. Together their 1992 imports were 
35 percent of total Category 352/652 imports. Their share of total 
category imports increased to 41 percent in 1994. Their 1994 imports 
were 24.5 percent of total U.S. production of cotton and manmade fiber 
underwear in the year ending September 1994.

[FR Doc.95-9906 Filed 4-20-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F