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U.S. disputes Egyptian textile duties
GENEVA (AP)--The U.S. has lodged a formal dispute with the World Trade Organization claiming Egypt is breaking international trade rules by imposing import duties of up to 51,000 percent on imports of clothing and some other textiles.
Washington is seeking consultations with the Egyptian government over the issue--a prerequisite before it can demand a legal ruling from WTO experts, according to a document released by the WTO Jan. 7.
In its submission to the WTO, the U.S. said Egypt has specified a fixed per-item import duty on clothes and made-up textile items like bed linen, rather than a duty based on the value of the product.
The result is that some low-value items are subject to duties vastly disproportionate to the value of the product. In the most extreme case, the import duty is 51,296 percent of the value of the product, while even the lowest figure is 144 percent, the U.S. submission says.
Under its WTO commitments, Egypt cannot impose a duty above 43 percent this year on clothing and 38 percent on made-up textiles, the U.S. said.
Until 2001, Egypt had a general ban on the import of clothing and textiles. It agreed to remove the ban as part of the Uruguay Round treaty on trade liberalization.
The countries have 60 days to hold consultations to seek to settle the dispute. If they fail, the U.S. can request a WTO panel to make a legal ruling.
Date: 1/19/04
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