Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 195 / Tuesday, October 11, 2005 / Notices 59041 

Chineseorigin cotton and man-made 

fiber brassieres are, due to the threat of 

market disruption, threatening to 

impede the orderly development of 

trade in these products, the United 

States will request consultations with 

China with a view to easing or avoiding 

the disruption in accordance with the 

Accession Agreement and the 

Committee’s Procedures. 

James C. Leonard III, 

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation 

of Textile Agreements. 

[FR Doc. 05–20406 Filed 10–6–05; 1:37 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–S 

COMMITTEE FOR THE 

IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE 

AGREEMENTS 

Solicitation of Public Comments on 

Request for Textile and Apparel 

Safeguard Action on Imports from 

China 

October 5, 2005. 

AGENCY: The Committee for the 

Implementation of Textile Agreements 

(the Committee). 

ACTION: Solicitation of public comments 

concerning a request for safeguard 

action on imports from China of cotton 

and man-made fiber underwear 

(Category 352/652). 

SUMMARY: On September 14, 2005, the 

Committee received a request from the 

American Manufacturing Trade Action 

Coalition, the National Council of 

Textile Organizations, the National 

Textile Association, SEAMS, and 

UNITE HERE requesting that the 

Committee reapply a limit on imports 

from China of cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear (Category 352/652). 

They request that a textile and apparel 

safeguard action, as provided for in the 

Report of the Working Party on the 

Accession of China to the World Trade 

Organization (the Accession 

Agreement), be reapplied on imports of 

cotton and man-made fiber underwear. 

The current limit on cotton and manmade fiber underwear expires on 

December 31, 2005. The Committee 

hereby solicits public comments on this 

request, in particular with regard to 

whether imports from China of cotton 

and man-made fiber underwear are, due 

to the threat of market disruption, 

threatening to impede the orderly 

development of trade in this product. 

Comments must be submitted by 

November 10, 2005 to the Chairman, 

Committee for the Implementation of 

Textile Agreements, Room 3001A, 

United States Department of Commerce, 

14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W., 

Washington, DC 20230. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jay 

Dowling, Office of Textiles and Apparel, 

U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 

482-4058. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority: Section 204 of the Agriculture 

Act of 1956, as amended; Executive 

Order11651, as amended. 

Background 

The Report of the Working Party on 

the Accession of China to the World 

Trade Organization (WTO) provides 

that, if a WTO Member, such as the 

United States, believes that imports of 

Chinese origin textile and apparel 

products are, ‘‘due to market disruption, 

threatening to impede the orderly 

development of trade in these 

products’’, it may request consultations 

with China with a view to easing or 

avoiding the disruption. Pursuant to this 

provision, if the United States requests 

consultations with China, it must, at the 

time of the request, provide China with 

a detailed factual statement showing (1) 

the existence or threat of market 

disruption; and (2) the role of products 

of Chinese origin in that disruption. 

Beginning on the date that it receives 

such a request, China must restrict its 

shipments to the United States to a level 

no greater than 7.5 percent (6 percent 

for wool product categories) above the 

amount entered during the first 12 

months of the most recent 14 months 

preceding the month in which the 

request was made. 

The Committee has published 

procedures (the Procedures) it follows 

in considering requests for Accession 

Agreement textile and apparel safeguard 

actions (68 FR 27787, May 21, 2003; 68 

FR 49440, August 18, 2003), including 

the information that must be included 

in such requests in order for the 

Committee to consider them. 

On September 14, 2005, the 

Committee received a request that an 

Accession Agreement textile and 

apparel safeguard action be reapplied on 

imports from China of cotton and manmade fiber underwear (Category 352/ 

652). The Committee has determined 

that this request provides the 

information necessary for the 

Committee to consider the request in 

light of the considerations set forth in 

the Procedures. The text of the request 

is available at http://otexa.ita.doc.gov/ 

Safeguard05.htm. 

The Committee is soliciting public 

comments on this request, in particular 

with regard to whether there is a threat 

of disruption to the U.S. market for 

cotton and man-made fiber underwear 

and, if so, the role of Chinese-origin 

cotton and man-made fiber underwear 

in that disruption. To this end, the 

Committee seeks relevant information 

addressing factors such as the following, 

which may be relevant in the particular 

circumstances of this case, involving a 

product under a quota that will be 

removed on December 31, 2005: (1) 

Whether cotton and man-made fiber 

underwear imports from China are 

entering, or are expected to enter, the 

United States at prices that are 

substantially below prices of the like or 

directly competitive U.S. product, and 

whether those imports are likely to have 

a significant depressing or suppressing 

effect on domestic prices of the like or 

directly competitive U.S. product, or are 

likely to increase demand for further 

imports from China; (2) Whether exports 

of Chinese-origin cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear to the United States are 

likely to increase substantially and 

imminently (due to existing unused 

production capacity, to capacity that 

can easily be shifted from the 

production of other products to the 

production of cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear, or to an imminent and 

substantial increase in production 

capacity or investment in production 

capacity), taking into account the 

availability of other markets to absorb 

any additional exports; (3) Whether 

Chinese-origin cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear that are presently sold 

in the Chinese market or in thirdcountry markets will be diverted to the 

U.S. market in the imminent future (for 

example, due to more favorable pricing 

in the U.S. market or to existing or 

imminent import restraints into third 

country market); (4) The level and the 

extent of any recent change in 

inventories of cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear in China or in U.S. 

bonded warehouses; (5) Whether 

conditions of the domestic industry of 

the like or directly competitive product 

demonstrate that market disruption is 

likely (as may be evident from any 

anticipated factory closures or decline 

in investment in the production of 

cotton and man-made fiber underwear, 

and whether actual or anticipated 

imports of Chinese-origin cotton and 

man-made fiber underwear are likely to 

affect the development and production 

efforts of the U.S. cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear industry; and (6) 

Whether U.S. managers, retailers, 

purchasers, importers or other market 

participants have recognized Chinese 

producers of cotton and man-made fiber 

underwear as potential suppliers (for 

example, through pre-qualification 

procedures or framework agreements). 

59042 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 195 / Tuesday, October 11, 2005 / Notices 

Comments may be submitted by any 

interested person. Comments must be 

received no later than November 10, 

2005. Interested persons are invited to 

submit ten copies of such comments to 

the Chairman, Committee for the 

Implementation of Textile Agreements, 

Room 3001A, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 14th and Constitution 

Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20230. 

If a comment alleges that there is no 

threat of market disruption or that the 

subject imports are not threatening to 

cause market disruption, the Committee 

will closely review any supporting 

information and documentation, such as 

information about domestic production 

or prices of like or directly competitive 

products. Particular consideration will 

be given to comments representing the 

views of actual producers in the United 

States of a like or directly competitive 

product. 

The Committee will protect any 

business confidential information that is 

marked ‘‘business confidential’’ from 

disclosure to the full extent permitted 

by law. To the extent that business 

confidential information is provided, 

two copies of a non-confidential version 

must also be provided in which 

business confidential information is 

summarized or, if necessary, deleted. 

Comments received, with the exception 

of information marked ‘‘business 

confidential’’, will be available for 

inspection between Monday - Friday, 

8:30 a.m and 5:30 p.m in the Trade 

Reference and Assistance Center Help 

Desk, Suite 800M, USA Trade 

Information Center, Ronald Reagan 

Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, 

NW, Washington, DC, (202) 482-3433. 

The Committee expects to make a 

determination within 60 calendar days 

of the close of the comment period as 

to whether the United States will 

request consultations with China. If, 

however, the Committee is unable to 

make a determination within 60 

calendar days, it will cause to be 

published a notice in the Federal 

Register, including the date by which it 

will make a determination. If the 

Committee makes a negative 

determination, it will cause this 

determination and the reasons therefore 

to be published in the Federal Register. 

If the Committee makes an affirmative 

determination that imports of 

Chineseorigin cotton and man-made 

fiber underwear are, due to the threat of 

market disruption, threatening to 

impede the orderly development of 

trade in these products, the United 

States will request consultations with 

China with a view to easing or avoiding 

the disruption in accordance with the 

Accession Agreement and the 

Committee’s Procedures. 

James C. Leonard III, 

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation 

of Textile Agreements. 

[FR Doc. 05–20407 Filed 10–6–05; 1:37 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–S 

COMMITTEE FOR THE 

IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE 

AGREEMENTS 

Solicitation of Public Comments on 

Request for Textile and Apparel 

Safeguard Action on Imports from 

China 

October 5, 2005. 

AGENCY: The Committee for the 

Implementation of Textile Agreements 

(the Committee). 

ACTION: Solicitation of public comments 

concerning a request for safeguard 

action on imports from China of other 

synthetic filament fabric (Category 620). 

SUMMARY: On September 14, 2005, the 

Committee received a request from the 

American Manufacturing Trade Action 

Coalition, the National Council of 

Textile Organizations, the National 

Textile Association, and UNITE HERE 

requesting that the Committee reapply a 

limit on imports from China of other 

synthetic filament fabric (Category 620). 

They request that a textile and apparel 

safeguard action, as provided for in the 

Report of the Working Party on the 

Accession of China to the World Trade 

Organization (the Accession 

Agreement), be reapplied on imports of 

other synthetic filament fabric. The 

current limit on other synthetic filament 

fabric expires on December 31, 2005. 

The Committee hereby solicits public 

comments on this request, in particular 

with regard to whether imports from 

China of other synthetic filament fabric 

are, due to the threat of market 

disruption, threatening to impede the 

orderly development of trade in this 

product. Comments must be submitted 

by November 10, 2005 to the Chairman, 

Committee for the Implementation of 

Textile Agreements, Room 3001A, 

United States Department of Commerce, 

14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W., 

Washington, DC 20230. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jay 

Dowling, Office of Textiles and Apparel, 

U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 

482-4058. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority: Section 204 of the Agriculture 

Act of 1956, as amended; Executive Order 

11651, as amended. 

Background 

The Report of the Working Party on 

the Accession of China to the World 

Trade Organization (WTO) provides 

that, if a WTO Member, such as the 

United States, believes that imports of 

Chinese origin textile and apparel 

products are, ‘‘due to market disruption, 

threatening to impede the orderly 

development of trade in these 

products’’, it may request consultations 

with China with a view to easing or 

avoiding the disruption. Pursuant to this 

provision, if the United States requests 

consultations with China, it must, at the 

time of the request, provide China with 

a detailed factual statement showing (1) 

the existence or threat of market 

disruption; and (2) the role of products 

of Chinese origin in that disruption. 

Beginning on the date that it receives 

such a request, China must restrict its 

shipments to the United States to a level 

no greater than 7.5 percent (6 percent 

for wool product categories) above the 

amount entered during the first 12 

months of the most recent 14 months 

preceding the month in which the 

request was made. 

The Committee has published 

procedures (the Procedures) it follows 

in considering requests for Accession 

Agreement textile and apparel safeguard 

actions (68 FR 27787, May 21, 2003; 68 

FR 49440, August 18, 2003), including 

the information that must be included 

in such requests in order for the 

Committee to consider them. 

On September 14, 2005, the 

Committee received a request that an 

Accession Agreement textile and 

apparel safeguard action be reapplied on 

imports from China of other synthetic 

filament fabric (Category 620). The 

Committee has determined that this 

request provides the information 

necessary for the Committee to consider 

the request in light of the considerations 

set forth in the Procedures. The text of 

the request is available at http:// 

otexa.ita.doc.gov/Safeguard05.htm. 

The Committee is soliciting public 

comments on this request, in particular 

with regard to whether there is a threat 

of disruption to the U.S. market for 

other synthetic filament fabric and, if so, 

the role of Chinese-origin other 

synthetic filament fabric in that 

disruption. To this end, the Committee 

seeks relevant information addressing 

factors such as the following, which 

may be relevant in the particular 

circumstances of this case, involving a 

product under a quota that will be 

removed on December 31, 2005: (1) 

Whether other synthetic filament fabric 

imports from China are entering, or are 

expected to enter, the United States at