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EU : Challenges Of Eliminating The Quotas In 2005 |
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2003-6-24 8:20:00
The complete elimination, as from 2005, of textile quotas between the WTO Members should appreciably modify production and trade in this sector. As from 2005, all the Members of the WTO will be able to export their textiles freely into the European, American and Canadian markets.
The EU, the world's largest exporter of textile products and the second largest of clothing, has respected its commitments of progressively dismantling the quotas and its industry is ready to compete in a world market in which trade accounted for €350 billion in 2002.
If this opening of the world textile trade constitutes an opportunity
for developing countries, it also causes concerns as regards the
vulnerability of the least developed countries to increased competition, on the inequality of customs protection at world level and on the future of the European clothing and textile industry.
Addressing, 18 June, the plenary meeting of the European Parliament, Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy stated that "in order to mitigate the effect of the elimination of the quotas on the poorest weakest countries, the preferential access that the EU grants to developing countries, in particular under the Generalised Preference System (the GSP), should be concentrated on the most vulnerable countries (in particular LDCs, ACP
and small economies)". The Commission intends to also examine other measures that could facilitate the use of the preferences by these countries such as the rules of origin, while making sure that these countries are those which really benefit from the preferences.
In addition the trading partners of the EU still have a great deal to
do as regards the opening of their textile markets. Within the framework of the WTO Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations, the EU invites the WTO members to bring closer their customs duties towards the lowest common level possible, and to eliminate all the non tariff barriers.
Answering a parliamentary question about the future of the European textiles industry, the Commissioner declared himself confident about EU competitiveness. He recalled that the EU was in favour of convergence concerning market access conditions at world level so that EU companies could increase their exports and penetrate new markets.
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