Commerce launches import textile monitoring system

Commerce launches import textile monitoring system    The U.S. Commerce Department will launch a new system to monitor imports of textiles and apparel products.
   According to the department, the system will allow it and the public to have “timely access” to textile and apparel data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (aggregated on a category basis).
   “This action demonstrates the commitment of this administration to put the tools necessary to enforce our trade agreements and level the playing field to support our domestic textile and apparel industry,” said Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez in a March 21 statement.
   Domestic textile producers are particularly concerned about the surge of Chinese textile and apparel imports since the end of the global quota system on Dec. 31.
   The department expects to have the new monitoring system in place by the first week in April. Data from the system will be posted biweekly on a Web site maintained by the department’s International Trade Administration Office of Textile and Apparel at https://otexa.ita.doc.gov/.