| Textile quota abolition by
US
to pave way for quality goods exports: Counsellor report |
| The
projected abolition of textile quota regime by the United States
by January 1, 2004 under the WTO agreement will bring immense opportunities
which will become available to countries like Pakistan, two-thirds of whose
exports are textile based.
..........In a report prepared by the Pakistan's Commercial Counsellor in Los Angeles and addressed to the Chairman of Export Promotion Bureau and Secretary, Commerce, he has emphasised that it is absolutely imperative that Pakistani industrial community should take immediate steps to refurbish and modernise their existing production facilities with a view to improving the quality and increasing the quantity of their production, besides acquiring and implementing the latest marketing techniques. ..........Pakistan's exports to the United States, which amounted to $ 1.74 billion in 1999, have shown a steady increase over the previous years. Correspondingly, Pakistan's imports from the United States have steadily decreased, creating a favourable balance of trade position amounting to $ 1.31 billion in 1999. Out of a total of $ 917 billion worth of imports into the US, Pakistan holds only 0.18 percent share of the import market. ..........Given the steady increase in Pakistan's exports and the impending abolition of textile quota regime, Pakistan will be looking at the vast opportunities which must be fully exploited in order to give a quantum leap to its exports. ..........The report suggests that the preparation for exploiting this opportunity must be initiated right away since there are strong possibilities that better prepared competitors in the field of textile could take away even the existing share Pakistan has and which has hitherto been protected by the quota regime. ..........There has been a consistent improvement in trade between Pakistan and United States with the balance of payment being distinctly and increasingly in favour of Pakistan. This is the result of increasing Pakistani exports into the US and declining imports from the US. With this pattern of growth, Pakistan should be able to achieve $ 2 billion imports into US during the current financial year. Exports from Pakistan to US for the first nine months i.e. July to March 2000 amounted to $ 1449 million. However, a major opportunity is available on the horizon from January, 2004, when the quota regime of textiles in US shall be abolished. ..........The total imports of textiles, apparel and household goods made of (both natural and synthetic fibres) into the US is over $ 57 billion. synthetic cloth $ 4.225 billion, cotton cloth, fabrics $ 2.194 billion, apparel, household goods - cotton $ 27.807 billion, apparel, textile, non-wool-cotton $ 21.591 billion, apparel household goods-wool $ 3.291 billion. Total for 1998 $ 57.108 billion. Pakistan's share, however, is only $ 1.37 billion, which represents 4.25 percent of the market. ..........One of the major factors which have smothered Pakistan's export of textiles into United States has been the quota regime. January, 2004, provides Pakistan with the historic opportunity for a quantum jump in the exports. If Pakistani industrialists and exporters are able to prepare and position themselves in the US market, the country's share can easily be doubled. However, the flip side is that this opportunity is also available to the competitors, especially India, China and Bangladesh who can even further squeeze Pakistan's market share. These preparations entail both marketing efforts in the US and improvement in quality and quantity in Pakistan, the report said. |