NTA Review and Forecast, January 2006
SPECIAL TO SOUTHERN TEXTILE NEWS
By Jonathan Stevens

As 2005 opened, China --fittingly for the year of the rooster in the Chinese zodiac-- was expected to spread wings and swoop down on our U.S. market for textile and apparel now that quotas were removed. Indeed, in the early months of 2005 saw serious erosion of our domestic industry due to the flood of imports, especially those of Chinese origin. But through the spring and summer the huge undertaking of NTA and other textile groups in pressing our government for safeguards paid off and the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements imports safeguard limits on many of the most sensitive products. Then, at the NTA 151st Annual Meeting in Florida, on November 8, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce Jim Leonard first publicly announced that the U.S. and China had signed a bi-lateral textile agreement running through 2008 that covers most of the most sensitive products.

On international trade issues, the year ended on a hopeful note. The World Trade Organization agreed in Hong Kong that the conclusion of the current Doha Round of trade talks may treat sensitive sectors, such as textiles, separately from the general marketing access agreement for other non-agricultural products. Such a "textile sectoral" is our best hope for mitigating further U.S. tariff reductions while opening foreign markets to our textile products. The WTO also agreed that developed countries, such as the U.S., may exclude certain products, which can include textiles, from duty-free access.

NTA was active on several fronts in 2005. Our Government Textiles Committee has been recognized by the Department of Defense (DoD) as the Textile Industry's voice. We continue to fight to maintain and strengthen the Berry Amendment which requires domestic U.S. sourcing for DoD textile and clothing procurement. Recently congress reaffirmed and tightened the requirements under Berry. We wish to thank Representative Robin Hayes in particular for his efforts in this regard.

In regulatory affairs, our Upholstery Fabrics Committee worked with the Consumer Product Safety Commission and state agencies on flammability issues. Our Textile Bedding Committee saw favorable resolution of a low-standing Federal Trade Commission on bedding "thread count,"

Our successful Annual Meeting, held on Amelia Island, Florida, offered specific advice on how to succeed in the global market, with presentation on global sourcing, finance and credit, intellectual property rights, and military textiles. We aggressively pursued our speakers for printed version of their talks and all are available to NTA members on CD-ROM.

We have also been active with others in the textile industry in promoting our domestic U.S. textile industry. In particular we note our sponsorship of an event at the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorist which was held in Boston.

NTA's American Flock Association celebrated twenty years as the only association in the Americas for the flock industry at the AFA Annual Meeting in Charleston, South Carolina

The NTA office in Boston also houses the Cashmere and Camel Hair Manufacturers Institute, an international organization of leading processors of luxury fibers. CCMI is recognized by industry and government as the leading authority on domestic and international issues concerning luxury fibers. In addition to fiber-processing, spinning, and weaving members, CCMI added, in 2005, it's first garment-maker/retailer member --Burberry Limited.

CCMI has taken our message of the importance of maintaining the integrity of luxury fiber around the world in 2005, presenting papers in Canada, Italy, Germany, and China.

Looking ahead to 2006.

Since 1854, NTA, the textile industries oldest organization, has been faithful in our mission of maintaining the health of the American textile industry. In 2006 --year of the dog-- and for many years over the long haul we plan to continue to faithfully represent this industry.

As we have seen the industry contract, the trade association has adapted. We are undertaking many "joint ventures" with other textile organizations for mutual benefit and to better and more efficiently serve our members. We have entered into a first-ever partnership with the American Textile Machinery Association and gives to companies that join both NTA and ATMA a discount in dues. NTA is also a Co-Sponsor of the American Textile Machinery Exhibition - International 2006 to be held during October 31 through November 3, 2006, at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia under the umbrella title MEGATEX. It will be the largest show of its kind in the Americas. In March we'll be presenting a paper at Techtextil NA in Atlanta, Georgia.

Our 152nd Annual Meeting of the National Textile Association will be September 17-19 at the Viking Hotel, Newport, Rhode Island.