DEVELOPING COUNTRY TEXTILES DEMANDS CLASH AT GOODS COUNCIL
Several developing countries clashed with China at a meeting of the WTO Goods Council on 15 June regarding the role the WTO should play in addressing the problems of Members that have been adversely affected by the January 2005 elimination of quotas in the textiles and clothing sector. Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey suggested that the WTO should "deal urgently" with the problems small developing countries are facing, including lower world prices, fierce competition from China and India, and the risk of losing markets in the US and EU because of liberalisation in the sector. The intervention was based on a paper presented — however never formally taken up — at the last Goods Council meeting, as China, India, Brazil and Hong Kong objected to its inclusion on the agenda (see BRIDGES Weekly, 18 May 2005). The Chinese responded forcefully against the idea of continued work in the Goods Council on textiles, noting that the quota system, which expired with the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing on 1 January 2005, discriminated against China and hurt the Chinese people. The WTO’s job, argued China, was to promote trade competition, not to stabilise market prices. Indian diplomats also said that their country opposed special measures for particular industries. Turkey has said that they are preparing a new paper to present to the next Goods Council meeting on 15 July.
In related news, Ahmed Parkar, Chair of the Mauritius Export Processing Zone (MEPZA), welcomed the recent agreement between the EU and China to restrain textile imports from China (see BRIDGES Weekly, 15 June 2005). "We are obviously very happy," he said. "This will allow our industry some more time to adapt to the new trading environment." In addition, the US and China held consultations on 16 June regarding seven safeguards the US has placed on Chinese imports. According to trade sources, China indicated its willingness during the meeting to negotiate a broad agreement on textiles with the US, a move they previously refused to consider. The two countries have agreed to hold a second round of negotiations shortly.
"Turkey, other developing countries, press WTO over Chinese textiles," XFN, 16 June 2005; "Mauritius welcomes EU-China textile pact," REUTERS, 15 June 2005; "ILO to Host Conference on Impact Of Textile Quota Removal on Employment," WTO REPORTER, 16 June 2005; "China Signals Openness to BroadTextile Pact in Talks with United States," WTO REPORTER, 21 June 2005
DSB SPECIAL SESSION: CHAIR TO SUBMIT REPORT TO GENERAL COUNCIL
The Special (negotiating) Session of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) met on 21 June to continue discussions on how to improve and clarify the rules governing dispute settlement. At the meeting, which ended within an hour with very little discussion among Members, Japan answered questions submitted by Members at the last meeting on the EU-Japan joint proposals regarding "sequencing" and post-retaliation issues (see BRIDGES Weekly, 11 May 2005). The Chair stated his intention of submitting a report on his own responsibility to the General Council at the end of July. According to the Chair, the report would state that while there had been progress on some proposals and issues, work would need to be intensified if substantial results were to be reached by the December Hong Kong Ministerial.
According to trade sources, delegates are consulting among themselves, outside the context of the DSU review talks, in informal groups to arrive at consensus on some proposals.
ICTSD reporting
TBT COMMITTEE: EU CHEMICALS LEGISLATION REMAINS A CONCERN
The EU’s proposed new chemicals legislation REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals) figured among the trade concerns raised by WTO Members at the Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), meeting in Geneva from 16-17 June. Since the EU notification to the TBT Committee in January 2004, the REACH proposal has repeatedly been debated, with some Members expressing concerns that the regulation may be in violation of obligations under the TBT Agreement (see related news stories here). The proposed legislation would require any company that produces or imports more than one tonne of a chemical substance per year to register it in a central database. Mexico felt that the rules could be in breach of the National Treatment principle. This concern relates to a clause in the draft that exempts substances "that have already been registered for that use by an actor up the supply chain." Several countries share the opinion that in reality this will only apply to producers already operating within the EU. Australia also criticised the legislation for being more trade restrictive than necessary. Some developing countries worried about the cost implications for their exports. The EU delegate said that all the issues raised by the Members had been addressed previously. The proposal is now being considered by the European Parliament and the European Council for adoption under the so-called co-decision procedure.
The next meeting of the TBT Committee is scheduled from 2-3 November.
For more information regarding REACH, visit http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/reach/index_en.htm
ICTSD reporting.