Online directory aims to boost textile trade

Online directory aims to boost textile trade    The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Tuesday started an online directory to enhance textiles trade and attract job-supporting investments to the United States and six trading partners who are parties to the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement.
   USTR said the DR-CAFTA Sourcing Directory is a 'timely and practical tool that will help American firms and their estimated 395,000 workers in the U.S. textile industry seize regional trade opportunities in support of small businesses and jobs here at home. Building better connections between textile buyers and manufacturers will facilitate additional investment in the region, including increased sourcing of textiles and apparel in CAFTA-DR member countries, as well as attract increased sourcing of textiles and apparel to the Western Hemisphere.'
   In 2010, the United States exported $2.4 billion in yarn and fabric to trading partners under the CAFTA-DR. These inputs were used to make apparel that was subsequently exported back to the United States from Central America. In 2010, the United States imported more than $7 billion in clothing from CAFTA-DR trading partners.
   The DR-CAFTA Sourcing Directory was developed jointly by USTR, Inter-American Development Bank, and the governments of CAFTA-DR member countries (Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the United States), with input and assistance from trade associations and private sector.