Request for Public Comments on Bilateral Consultations With the Government of Cambodia

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Request for Public Comments on Bilateral Consultations With the

Government of Cambodia

November 17, 1997.

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

ACTION: Notice.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Helen L. LeGrande, International Trade

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

Commerce, (202) 482-4212. For information on categories for which

consultations have been requested, call (202) 482-3740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as

amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as

amended.

On October 29, 1997, under Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of

1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854), the Government of the United States

requested consultations with the Government of Cambodia with respect to

cotton and man-made fiber gloves and mittens in Categories 331/631,

produced or manufactured in Cambodia.

The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that, if no

solution is agreed upon in consultations with the Government of

Cambodia, the Government of the United States may later establish a

limit for the entry and withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of

cotton textile products in Categories 331/631, produced or manufactured

in Cambodia and exported during the twelve-month period which began on

October 29, 1997 and extends through October 28, 1998, at a level of

not less than 1,250,841 dozen pairs.

A statement of serious damage, actual threat of serious damage or

the exacerbation of serious damage concerning Categories 331/631

follows this notice.

Anyone wishing to comment or provide data or information regarding

the treatment of Categories 331/631 or to comment on domestic

production or availability of products included in

[[Page 62291]]

Categories 331/631 is invited to submit 10 copies of such comments or

information to Troy H. Cribb, Chairman, Committee for the

Implementation of Textile Agreements, U.S. Department of Commerce,

Washington, DC 20230; ATTN: Helen L. LeGrande. The comments received

will be considered in the context of the consultations with the

Government of Cambodia.

Because the exact timing of the consultations is not yet certain,

comments should be submitted promptly. Comments or information

submitted in response to this notice will be available for public

inspection in the Office of Textiles and Apparel, room H3100, U.S.

Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington,

DC.

Further comments may be invited regarding particular commentary or

information received from the public which the Committee for the

Implementation of Textile Agreements considers appropriate for further

consideration.

The solicitation of comments regarding any aspect of the

implementation of an agreement is not a waiver in any respect of the

exemption contained in 5 U.S.C.553(a)(1) relating to matters which

constitute ``a foreign affairs function of the United States.''

The United States remains committed to finding a solution

concerning Categories 331/631. Should such a solution be reached in

consultations with the Government of Cambodia, further notice will be

published in the Federal Register.

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).

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

Summary of the Statement in Support of Request for Consultations Under

Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956

Cotton and Manmade Fiber Gloves and Mittens--Category 331/631

October 1997

Import Situation and Conclusion

U.S. imports of cotton and manmade fiber gloves and mittens,

Category 331/631, from Cambodia surged to 1,250,841 dozen pair during

the year ending July 1997, over seven times the 176,732 dozen pair

imported in the year ending July 1996 and more than 15 times the 79,968

dozen pair imported in calendar year 1995. Imports from Cambodia were

2.6 percent of total U.S. imports of Category 331/631 in the year

ending July 1997, and were equivalent to 4.9 percent of U.S. production

of Category 331/631 in 1996.

U.S. imports of cotton and manmade fiber gloves and mittens,

Category 331/631, from Cambodia entered the U.S. at an average landed

duty-paid value of $3.12 per dozen pair during the first seven months

of 1997, 42 percent below the average landed duty-paid value for all

cotton and manmade fiber glove and mitten imports into the U.S., and 70

percent below the average U.S. producers' price for cotton and manmade

fiber gloves and mittens.

The sharp and substantial increase of low-valued Category 331/631

imports from Cambodia threatens to cause disruption to the U.S. cotton

and manmade fiber glove and mitten market and to the orderly flow of

trade in these products. In several instances, Cambodia's import level

for the year ending July 1997 exceeds the trade levels of WTO countries

that have quota agreements with the United States.

U.S. Production, Import Penetration, and Market Share

U.S. production of cotton and manmade fiber gloves and mittens,

Category 331/631, declined in 1996 falling to 25,424,000 dozen pair, 1

percent below the 1995 production level. Imports of Category 331/631

increased from 45,559,773 dozen pair in 1995 to 47,336,957 dozen pair

in 1996, a 4 percent increase. Imports continued to increase reaching

48,220,877 dozen pair in the year ending July 1997, 7 percent above the

same period a year earlier.

The ratio of imports to domestic production increased to 186

percent in 1996. The domestic manufacturers share of the U.S. market

for cotton and manmade fiber gloves and mittens decreased to 33 percent

in 1996.

[FR Doc. 97-30570 Filed 11-20-97; 8:45 am]

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