Responding to pleas from the U.S. textile and apparel industries and pressure from the U.S. House and Senate, David Spooner, the U.S. Trade Representative's special textile negotiator, is slated to lead the U.S. delegation in talks on Aug. 16 and 17 aimed at reaching a "broad textile agreement" with China. The inter-agency team at the San Francisco sessions will include representatives of the Commerce, Labor, State and Treasury Departments.
"The administration will utilize its WTO [World Trade Organization] rights to level the playing field for American workers," vows Spooner. "In fact, we've already utilized the WTO textile safeguard to protect our textile manufactures from market disruption. Our aim, next week, is to seek a long-term solution." The U.S. imposed limited quotas on textile imports from China on May 23 and 27.
