Author: Sajid Aziz
Publication: The Jung, Pakistan
Date: November 28, 2001
URL: http://jang.com.pk/thenews/nov2001-daily/28-11-2001/business/b1.htm
Karachi: The US government has shelved
the plan to extend a package of trade and tariff concessions to Pakistan
as compensation for the colossal losses the country's trade with US had
suffered in the wake of September 11 incidents, sources said here Tuesday.
The trade sources in Karachi quoted
their buyers in New York saying "The administration shelves plan to increase
quotas and tariff cuts on Pakistan's apparel products. The Bush Administration
has all but given up its efforts to extend tariff and quota concessions
to Pakistan in connection with its cooperation in the US anti-terrorism
campaign after its proposals met with opposition from US textile industry
interests and their supporters in Congress".
They informed that the decision
came after the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman, Bill Thomas argued
that concessions of the type the administration was proposing would cause
a backlash among members from textile states that could increase the difficulty
in passing a fast-track bill in the house this year. On the other hand,
the USTR's Special Textile Negotiator, Kevin Koonce who was assigned the
job only three weeks ago, has resigned from his post. His resignation caught
both industry and government officials by surprise. So far no reason has
been provided for his resignation.
It is reported that three out of
five CITA (Council for Implementation of Textile Agreements) representatives
have acknowledged that Bush Administration has not completely given up
on the idea of cutting tariffs and increasing quota ceiling for Pakistani
textile and apparel products, the proposals "were on the shelf for the
time being". The package of benefits the US is extending to Pakistan includes
some modest concessions, but these benefits fall far short of what Pakistan
is seeking. The administration has asked Congress to pass legislation to
extend duty-free treatment under GSP (generalised system of tariff preferential),
to two categories of products not currently covered - hand knitted carpets
and leather gloves. But the exporters in Pakistan argued that the two items
have no significant volume in the US import and come under no quota or
tariff barrier.
Senators Max Baucus and Charles
Grassley, the chairman and ranking Republican, respectively, of the Senate
Finance Committee, have introduced legislation to extend the GSP benefits
at the request of Bush Administration. The sources also pointed out that
Senator Brownback, however, on his own introduced a bill that would provide
the President with Proclamation authority to reduce or suspend duties on
Pakistani textile and apparel products.
In addition, the Administration
has adjusted Pakistan's 2001 quotas on several products in order to account
for discrepancies between how Pakistan and the US calculated quota-fill
rates from 1998-2000. The adjustment, which CITA announced in a Federal
Register notice, would add quota in 2001 for about $11 million worth of
additional textile and apparel imports.
The Pakistani counterparts have,
however, argued that such adjustments were made at their own requests and
would have no affect on Pakistani shipments because they were simple adjustments
made on papers. The US authorities have reduced some quantities they deducted
from three years' quota quantities. There would be no additional export
to USA from Pakistan as a result of such adjustments, they claimed.
The textile shipments from Pakistan
to USA have seriously disrupted since the US bombing on Afghanistan making
the US importers to switch their business to some other less volatile region
than Pakistan. The US authorities have, though, made adjustments in some
specific categories by borrowing from next year's quotas.
Due to delay in the forthcoming
package of trade concessions, it will bring no major change in current
situation even if it is announced by the US authorities now because the
buying season is already over and we will have to wait until the next season
starting in March, said Chairman, Pakistan Readymade Garments Exporters
and Manufacturers Association (PRGMEA), Masood Naqi.
