[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 148 (Wednesday, August 2, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39366-39367]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-18938]



-----------------------------------------------------------------------


COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

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

July 27, 1995.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Novak, 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 39367]]

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 June 29, 1995, 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 Government of Costa Rica with respect to cotton 
and man-made fiber nightwear and pajamas in Categories 351/651, 
produced or manufactured in Costa Rica.
    The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that, pursuant 
to the ATC, if no solution is agreed upon in consultations with the 
Government of Costa Rica, 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 351/651, produced or manufactured in 
Costa Rica and exported during the twelve-month period which began on 
June 29, 1995 and extends through June 28, 1996, at a level of not less 
than 170,979 dozen.
    A summary statement of serious damage, or actual threat thereof, 
concerning Categories 351/651 follows this notice.
    Anyone wishing to comment or provide data or information regarding 
the treatment of Categories 351/651, or to comment on domestic 
production or availability of products included in Categories 351/651, 
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 Costa Rica.
    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 351/651. Should such a solution be reached in 
consultations with the Government of Costa Rica, 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.

Summary Statement of Serious Damage
Cotton and Manmade Fiber Pajamas and Other Nightwear--Category 351/651
June 1995
    The initial determination of serious damage, or actual threat 
thereof, to the U.S. industry producing cotton and manmade fiber 
pajamas and other nightwear, Category 351/651, was made in March 1995. 
Pursuant to Article 6, paragraph 5, of the Agreement on Textiles and 
Clothing, the March 1995 statement of serious damage, or actual threat 
thereof, for cotton and manmade fiber pajamas and other nightwear, 
Category 351/651, is herein updated to include Costa Rica to which 
serious damage, or actual threat thereof, is attributed.
    At the time of the initial determination of serious damage, or 
actual threat thereof, imports from Costa Rica were down. Imports from 
Costa Rica are now surging, increasing 17 percent for the year ending 
March 1995 when compared with the same period in a year earlier, and 
are up 129 percent during the first quarter of 1995 when compared with 
the same period in 1994.
    Serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to the domestic industry 
resulting from the sharp and substantial increase in imports of cotton 
and manmade fiber pajamas and other nightwear is attributed to imports 
from Jamaica, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Honduras. The combination of 
surging imports and low priced goods from these countries have resulted 
in loss of domestic output, market share, investment, employment, man-
hours worked, and total annual wages.
    Total imports from these countries increased from 377,536 dozen in 
1992 to 1,014,361 dozen in 1994, a sharp and substantial increase of 
169 percent. During the year ending March 1995 imports from these 
countries increased 52 percent when compared with the same period a 
year earlier. Together their year ending March 1995 imports were 9.1 
percent of total Category 351/651 imports and were 9.9 of total U.S. 
production of Category 351/651 in calendar year 1994.
[FR Doc. 95-18938 Filed 8-1-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F