A Japanese government probe that began in April 2001 shows that
the volume of Chinese towel imports to Japan grew only 7 to 8
percent annually, insufficient to warrant safeguard tariffs, the
Ministry of Trade and Industry (MITI) announced.
"We want to protect our domestic industry, but we have to play
by the international rules," Trade Minister Shoichi Nakagawa said,
referring to the regulations set by the World Trade
Organization.
A growth rate of at least 10 percent is necessary to impose
safeguard tariffs.
An industry association of Japanese towel makers asked the
ministry in February 2001 to impose special tariffs to stop surging
towel imports, especially from China and Vietnam, which they
claimed were hurting domestic producers.
MITI, however, said that foreign-made towels had stopped
flooding into Japan.
It attempted to drop the investigation into Chinese towel
imports in 2002 owing to insufficient evidence, but the huge amount
of political pressure being exerted kept the inquiry open.
MITI has extended the investigation five times since October
2001, each time for six months.
Cao Xinyu, deputy director of the China Chamber of Commerce for
Textile Import and Export, said the Japanese textile industry
should not rely on a temporary government policy but seek a lasting
solution.
"Why don't our Japanese counterparts use their advanced
technology to develop high-tech textile products instead of fearing
China's products?" Cao asked.
Japan has tried many times to block Chinese imports, in
particular farm produce, although Japan is usually the biggest
winner in bilateral trade.
Japan recorded a US$5.0 billion bilateral trade surplus with
China in 2002 and a US$15 billion surplus last year.
(China Daily April 5, 2004)