Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Cotton, Man- Made Fiber, Silk Blend and Other Vegetable Fiber Textiles and Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Bangladesh

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Cotton, Man-

Made Fiber, Silk Blend and Other Vegetable Fiber Textiles and Textile

Products Produced or Manufactured in Bangladesh

December 20, 1996.

AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner of Customs establishing

limits.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ross Arnold, International Trade

Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of

Commerce, (202) 482-4212. For information on the quota status of these

limits, refer to the Quota Status Reports posted on the bulletin boards

of each Customs port or call (202) 927-5850. For information on

embargoes and quota re-openings, call (202) 482-3715.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended;

section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C.

1854); Uruguay Round Agreements Act.

The import restraint limits for textile products, produced or

manufactured in Bangladesh and exported during the period January 1,

1997 through December 31, 1997 are based on the limits notified to the

Textiles Monitoring Body pursuant to the

[[Page 68242]]

Uruguay Round Agreements Act and the Uruguay Round Agreement on

Textiles and Clothing (ATC).

In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the

Commissioner of Customs to establish the limits for the 1997 period.

The 1997 limits for Categories 338/339, 347/348 and 363 have been

reduced for carryforward applied to the 1996 limits.

A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS

numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories

with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal

Register notice 61 FR 66263, published on December 17, 1996).

The letter to the Commissioner of Customs and the actions taken

pursuant to it are not designed to implement all of the provisions of

the Uruguay Round Agreements Act and the ATC, but are designed to

assist only in the implementation of certain of their provisions.

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

December 20, 1996.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20229.

Dear Commissioner: Pursuant to section 204 of the Agricultural

Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854), the Uruguay Round

Agreements Act and the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and

Clothing (ATC); and in accordance with the provisions of Executive

Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended, you are directed to

prohibit, effective on January 1, 1997, entry into the United States

for consumption and withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of

cotton, man-made fiber, silk blend and other vegetable fiber textile

products in the following categories, produced or manufactured in

Bangladesh and exported during the twelve-month period beginning on

January 1, 1997 and extending through December 31, 1997, in excess

of the following levels of restraint:

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Category Twelve-month restraint limit

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237....................................... 440,629 dozen.

331....................................... 1,116,315 dozen pairs.

334....................................... 134,426 dozen.

335....................................... 241,362 dozen.

336/636................................... 431,924 dozen.

338/339................................... 1,181,800 dozen.

340/640................................... 2,671,533 dozen

341....................................... 2,343,153 dozen.

342/642................................... 405,402 dozen.

347/348................................... 1,991,808 dozen.

351/651................................... 643,862 dozen.

352/652................................... 9,605,759 dozen.

363....................................... 22,667,619 numbers.

369-S \1\................................. 1,608,700 kilograms.

634....................................... 470,294 dozen.

635....................................... 304,695 dozen.

638/639................................... 1,498,738 dozen.

641....................................... 981,144 dozen.

645/646................................... 351,962 dozen.

647/648................................... 1,326,313 dozen.

847....................................... 704,223 dozen.

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\1\ Category 369-S: only HTS number 6307.10.2005.

Imports charged to these category limits for the period January

1, 1996 through December 31, 1996 shall be charged against those

levels of restraint to the extent of any unfilled balances. In the

event the limits established for that period have been exhausted by

previous entries, such goods shall be subject to the levels set

forth in this directive.

The limits set forth above are subject to adjustment in the

future pursuant to the provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements

Act, the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing and any

administrative arrangements notified to the Textiles Monitoring

Body.

In carrying out the above directions, the Commissioner of

Customs should construe entry into the United States for consumption

to include entry for consumption into the Commonwealth of Puerto

Rico.

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has

determined that these actions fall within the foreign affairs

exception to the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).

Sincerely,

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

[FR Doc. 96-32985 Filed 12-26-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F