FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

NTA Asks Bush Administration to Expedite China Safeguards

BOSTON, January 19, 2005 -- Yesterday, the Board of Government of the National Textile Association voted to urge the Bush Administration to act promptly to get the threat-based China safeguard petitions back on track, to self-initiate Safeguards based on market disruption, and streamline import data reporting so the U.S. textile industry can file safeguard petitions promptly when disruption begins to occur.

NTA in 2004 joined in a major textile industry group effort to file threat-based China textile and apparel safeguards. The organizations participating in this project each committed scores of hours of volunteer and staff time. We carefully selected the 12 products based on thorough analysis of the verifiable threat of market disruption. NTA Chairman, Jonathan Stevens, President, Ames Textile Corporation/Game Time Fabrics. said, "We are dismayed that a single judge could, after a brief review, enjoin CITA from further consideration of our petitions. We have urged the Bush Administration to expedite China textile and apparel safeguards."

At a meeting of the Board of Government of NTA in New York on January 18, the Association urged the Bush Administration to

  • Pursue a legal strategy to as quickly as possible restart consideration of threat-based safeguard petitions;
  • Institute a real time counting system of import data in order to streamline the collection of import statistics necessary to pursue cases based on market disruption; and
  • Self-initiating safeguards based on market disruption in early 2005.

    NTA, formed in 1854, is the oldest industrial trade association in America. Its 153 members weave and knit fabric in the U.S.; manufacture yarns in the U.S. for the formation of fabrics; and dye, print, and otherwise finish fabrics in the U.S. For more information about NTA, see our website www.nationaltextile.org.