The European Commission has proposed opening zero-duty import quotas for a wide range of yarns plus some textiles and fabrics for which there is demand within the European Union (EU), but where local production is either weak or non-existent.

Assuming they are approved by the EU Council of Ministers, three-year (almost entirely) duty free quotas, unlimited in scope, will be opened for products ranging from textile fabrics coated with adhesive, embedded with microspheres; knitted or woven fabrics, coated or covered with artificial plastic material, also embedded with microspheres; cotton gauze, less than 1,500mm wide; some woven polytetrafluoroethylene fabrics; and woven fabrics of poly(vinyl alcohol) fibres, for machine embroidery.

The yarns covered by these duty-free exemptions include yarns of synthetic textile fibres solely of aromatic polyamides obtained by the polycondensation of m-phenylenediamine and isophthalic acid; non-textured filament yarn of poly(vinyl alcohol); yarn wholly of poly(glycollic acid); synthetic filament yarn, single, untwisted, wholly of poly(thio-1,4-phenylene); some polyamide yarns of crimpable bicomponent filaments consisting of poly(hexamethylene adipamide) with a copolyamide, for making knee-length stockings, women's stockings and panty hose (tights).

All tariff concessions are to start January 1, to be exploited by suppliers from any country.

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