The bargain is very clear for textile producers and exporters from Pakistan. They are asking for nothing less than calling off about 35 percent textile tariffs in certain categories that have stifled exports of apparel, clothing from Pakistan to the US, industry sources affirm.
All out efforts by manufacturers from Pakistan to form a caucus and hopes to seek support of American Legislators for securing trade concessions worth about $400 million a year, are all but lost.
Logic according to them implies no job threats in the textile heartland of the US textile and apparel industry and further, no question of competing against U.S. firms but against mills produces from South Africa, Jordan, and Kenya that enjoy much easy access of US market. Statistics reveal Pakistan ranked 21st in 2000 among suppliers of apparel to US having below 2 percent market share.
Sadly for Pakistan, US textile and apparel makers and law makers are not ready to oblige arguing Pakistan's own tariffs structure on textile and apparel imports was much higher to the extent of violating international trade rules. Further, they said cotton subsidies accorded to such an extent that American cotton being out priced from Caribbean garment factories.
However, Carlos Moore, Executive Director, American Textile Manufacturers Institute disagrees and says, "The US government could certainly find ways to reward Pakistan without singling out one industry to pay for it."
Grant Aldonis, Commerce Undersecretary for International Trade argues that wider access for Pakistani textiles "would have had a negative effect on our ability to conduct trade policy," adding that “the textile industry couldn't be a bargaining chip."
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