US Threatens WTO Action over Egypt's Textile Import Duties
The Bush administration has warned to lodge a complaint against Egypt in the WTO if action is not taken to ease textiles and apparels import duties, which effectively block the US outside the market.
Egytex News Desk
Egytex
The US Trade Representative office has already requested consultation with the Egyptian side, which shall last for a maximum of 60 days or otherwise raise the issue to the dispute settlement panel in the WTO.
Egypt has officially lifted the ban on textiles and clothing in January 2002 and instead imposed prohibitive specific duties well above the ad valorem bound rates of 41% and 46% for textiles and apparels, respectively.
No response has been given till now from Egyptian Officials, but there has been numerous attempts by Egyptian businessmen to sign FTA (Free trade aggreement) with the US, relatively similar to FTA that has been signed with Jordan.
From the Egytex news archive, first published on 25 December 2003. Figures and names are as reported at the time.
