[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 120 (Thursday, June 22, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32509-32510]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-15338]



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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Request for Public Comments on Bilateral Textile Consultations 
With Guatemala on Certain Cotton and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products

June 16, 1995.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Notice.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Aldrich, International Trade 
Specialist, 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.

[[Page 32510]] 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).

    On May 31, 1995, under the terms of Section 204 of the Agricultural 
Act of 1956, as amended, the Government of the United States requested 
consultations with the Government of Guatemala with respect to cotton 
and man-made fiber skirts in Categories 342/642, produced or 
manufactured in Guatemala.
    The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that, if no 
solution is agreed upon in consultations with the Government of 
Guatemala, the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements 
may later establish a limit for the entry and withdrawal from warehouse 
for consumption of textile products in Categories 342/642, produced or 
manufactured in Guatemala and exported during the twelve-month period 
which began on May 31, 1995 and extends through May 30, 1996, at a 
level of not less than 319,417 dozen.
    A statement of serious damage concerning Categories 342/642 follows 
this notice.
    Anyone wishing to comment or provide data or information regarding 
the treatment of Categories 342/642, or to comment on domestic 
production or availability of products included in Categories 342/642, 
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 Government of Guatemala.
    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 342/642. Should such a solution be reached in 
consultations with the Government of Guatemala, 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--Guatemala
Cotton and Manmade Fiber Skirts
Category 342/642
May 1995
Import Situation and Conclusion
    U.S. imports of cotton and manmade fiber skirts, Category 342/642, 
from Guatemala reached 319,417 dozen in the year ending February 1995, 
22 percent above the 262,414 dozen imported in same period a year 
earlier. Imports from Guatemala were 4.0 percent of total U.S. imports 
of Category 342/642 in the year ending February 1995, and were 
equivalent to 4.8 percent of U.S. production of Category 342/642 in 
calendar year 1994.
    U.S. imports of cotton and manmade fiber skirts from Guatemala in 
Category 342/642 during 1994 entered the U.S. at an average landed 
duty-paid value of $71.16 per dozen, 53 percent below U.S. producers' 
average price for cotton and manmade fiber skirts.
    The sharp and substantial increase of low valued Category 342/642 
imports from Guatemala is causing serious damage to the U.S. domestic 
industry producing cotton and manmade fiber skirts.
U.S. Production, Import Penetration, and Market Share
    U.S. production of cotton and manmade fiber skirts, Category 342/
642, declined from 8,117,000 dozen in 1992 to 6,606,000 dozen in 1994, 
a decline of 19 percent. In contrast imports of Category 342/642 surged 
from 6,884,000 dozen in 1992 to 7,661,000 dozen in 1994, an 11 percent 
increase. Category 342/642 imports continue to increase, reaching 
7,908,000 dozen in the year ending February 1995.
    The ratio of imports to domestic production increased from 85 
percent in 1992 to 116 percent in 1994. The share of this market held 
by domestic manufacturers fell from 54 percent in 1992 to 46 percent in 
1994, a decline of eight percentage points.
[FR Doc. 95-15338 Filed 6-21-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F