America's new textiles quotas

By Alex Singleton | 14 May 2005

The United States has imposed new quotas on textile imports in order to protect American textiles manufacturers from competition. The move is bad news for American consumers and it is also bad news for the world's poorest. Some of the blame must be apportioned to the campaigns of protectionists like Britain's Christian Aid which have been claiming - incorrectly - that textiles liberalization is not in the interests of the poor. They have helped create a worldwide feeling of unease about the end of quotas.

The result is that America has now taken action, not to help producers in developing countries, but to protect uncompetitive American producers. America's move in unwarranted and unjustified. The former European trade commissioner and future WTO boss, Pascal Lamy (pictured), has attacked the new quotas:

Mr. Lamy said that the global trade body [WTO] had been easing out the quota system over the last decade and that all countries had been given ample opportunity to prepare for the changes.

"It is not the law of the jungle, and the W.T.O. rules were clearly set," he said. "Why are some politicians now not recognizing that fact?"

Fortunately, the new quotas will have to go by 2008. But in the meantime, America's move means that developing countries will have worse jobs, less wealth creation and less trade. Is this really what Christian Aid was aiming for?