The Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) has announced its decision to formally support the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). NCTO feels that its principal objectives — among them, a strong yarn forward rule of origin for a majority of textile and apparel products; reasonable multi-year tariff phase-outs for sensitive textile and apparel products; and terms that keep the Western Hemisphere textile and apparel production chain stable — were met in the final agreement. NCTO had pledged to support the agreement as long as key objectives were met.
“No agreement is perfect, and certainly that is the case with TPP,” said Jeff Price NCTO chairman. “There were difficult trade-offs that we, as U.S. manufacturers, had to consider during this process, as is the case with any complicated negotiations. Nonetheless, this agreement is very sound in the essential elements that govern textile trade. With legislative review and action expected in 2016, NCTO looks forward to working with congressional leadership, the committees of jurisdiction, our supporters on Capitol Hill, and the Obama Administration on a path forward for TPP.
“We extend our thanks to Ambassador Michael Froman and the entire U.S. negotiating team for their willingness to acknowledge our input throughout the TPP process,” Price concluded.
January/February 2016
