Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Wool Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Ukraine

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Wool Textile

Products Produced or Manufactured in Ukraine

November 3, 1998.

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, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Naomi Freeman, 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, call (202) 927-5850, or refer to the U.S. Customs

website at http://www.customs.ustreas.gov. For information on embargoes

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

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.

The Bilateral Textile Agreement of July 22, 1998, between the

Governments of the United States and Ukraine establishes limits for

certain wool textile products for the period January 1, 1999 through

December 31, 1999.

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

Commissioner of Customs to establish the 1999 limits.

These limits may be revised if Ukraine becomes a member of the

World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United States applies the WTO

agreement to Ukraine.

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 62 FR 66057, published on December 17, 1997).

Information regarding the 1999 CORRELATION will be published in the

Federal Register at a later date.

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

November 3, 1998.

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); Executive Order 11651 of

March 3, 1972, as amended; and the Bilateral Textile Agreement of

July 22, 1998, between the Governments of the United States and

Ukraine, you are directed to prohibit, effective on January 1, 1999,

entry into the United States for consumption and withdrawal from

warehouse for consumption of wool textile products in the following

categories, produced or manufactured in Ukraine and exported during

the twelve-month period beginning on January 1, 1999 and extending

through December 31, 1999, in excess of the following levels of

restraint:

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Category Twelve-month limit

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435....................................... 91,902 dozen.

442....................................... 15,300 dozen.

444....................................... 66,300 numbers.

448....................................... 66,300 dozen.

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The limits set forth above are subject to adjustment pursuant to

the current bilateral agreement between the Governments of the

United States and Ukraine.

These limits may be revised if Ukraine becomes a member of the

World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United States applies the WTO

agreement to Ukraine.

Products in the above categories exported during 1998 shall be

charged to the applicable category limits for that year (see

directive dated November 24, 1997) to the extent of any unfilled

balances. In the event the limits established for that period have

been exhausted by previous entries, such

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products shall be charged to the limits set forth in this directive.

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 of 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. 98-29975 Filed 11-6-98; 8:45 am]

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