Settlement on Transshipment Charges, Establishment, Amendment and Adjustment of Import Limits for Certain Cotton and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Pakistan

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Settlement on Transshipment Charges, Establishment, Amendment and

Adjustment of Import Limits for Certain Cotton and Man-Made Fiber

Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Pakistan

April 9, 1996.

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

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner of Customs announcing

settlement on transshipment charges, establishing, amending and

adjusting limits.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: April 16, 1996.

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-

6714. 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.

In a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) dated March 22, 1996, the

Governments of the United States and Pakistan agreed that transshipment

charges for bed sheets in Category 361 in the amount of 346,483 numbers

will be deducted from the charges already made to Pakistan's 1995 quota

level.

Also, the two governments agreed to establish annual limits,

prorated this year beginning March 22, 1996, for Categories 666-P

(pillowcases, excluding bolster cases) and Category 666-S (sheets) and

to increase the 1996 base levels for Categories 360 and 361.

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

Commissioner of Customs to establish limits for Categories 666-P and

666-S for the prorated period beginning on March 22, 1996 and extending

through December 31, 1996 and to increase the current limits for

Categories 360 and 361. The amended limits for Categories 360 and 361

reflect reduction of carryforward used in 1995, in the case of Category

360, and recrediting of unused carryforward, in the case of Category

361. In a separate unpublished letter, the Commissioner of Customs is

directed to deduct 346,483 numbers from the 1995 quota charges for

Category 361.

Textile products in Categories 666-P and 666-S shall continue to

require a Category 666 visa. Changes to the current visa requirements

will be published in the Federal Register at a later date.

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 609 FR 65299, published on December 19, 1995). Also see

60 FR 40824, published on August 10, 1995; and 60 FR 62393, published

on December 6, 1995.

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, the Uruguay Round Agreement on

Textiles and Clothing and the MOU dated March 22, 1996, but are

designed to assist only in the implementation of certain of their

provisions.

Troy H. Cribb,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

April 9, 1996.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20229.

Dear Commissioner: This directive amends, but does not cancel,

the directive issued to you on November 29, 1995, by the Chairman,

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements. That

directive concerns imports of certain cotton and man-made fiber

textile products, produced or manufactured in Pakistan and exported

during the twelve-month period which began on January 1, 1996 and

extends through December 31, 1996.

Effective on April 16, 1996, you are directed to increase the

current limits for Categories 360 and 361 and to establish limits

for Categories 666-P and 666-S for the period beginning on March 22,

1996 and extending through December 31, 1996, pursuant to a

Memorandum of Understanding dated March 22, 1996 between the

Governments of the United States and Pakistan, and as provided for

under the terms of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, the Uruguay

Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, as follows:

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Category Limit \1\

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360....................................... 4,170,345 numbers.

361....................................... 5,000,000 numbers.

666-P \1\................................. 529,508 kilograms.

666-S \2\................................. 2,803,279 kilograms.

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\1\ The limits have not been adjusted to account for any imports

exported after December 31, 1995 (Categories 360 and 361); and March

21, 1996 (Categories 666-P and 666-S).

\2\ Category 666-P: only HTS numbers 6302.22.1010, 6302.22.1020,

6302.22.2010, 6302.32.1010, 6302.32.1020, 6302.32.2010 and

6302.32.2020.

\3\ Category 666-S: only HTS numbers 6302.22.1030, 6302.22.1040,

6302.22.2020, 6302.32.1030, 6302.32.1040, 6302.32.2030 and

6302.32.2040.

Textile products in Categories 666-P and 666-S which have been

exported to the United States prior to March 22, 1996 shall not be

subject to this directive.

Textile products in Categories 666-P and 666-S which have been

released from the custody of the U.S. Customs Service under the

provisions of 19 U.S.C. 1448(b) or 1484(a)(1) prior to the effective

date of this directive shall not be denied entry under this

directive.

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,

Troy H. Cribb,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

[FR Doc. 96-9379 Filed 4-16-96; 8:45 am]

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