China takes hard line in textile talks with U.S.

[Rose Siding]

BEIJING (Reuters) - China took a tough line on Saturday in trade talks with U.S. officials on its surging textile exports, signaling no quick breakthrough in a row that threatens to spill over into the diplomatic arena.

Vice Premier Wu Yi, who oversees trade, said emergency import curbs the Bush administration had slapped on trousers, shirts, underwear and cotton yarn from China were hurting an industry that employs 19 million people.

"The restrictions implemented by the U.S. have severely impacted China's textile production," the official Xinhua news agency quoted Wu as saying.

"If this cannot be handled well it will severely affect the course of bilateral economic relations and trade," she said.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-06-04T121900Z_01_N04592448_RTRIDST_0_NEWS-TRADE-CHINA-USA-DC.XML

[NewJeffCT]

1. who would last longer in a trade war?

China or the US? Both countries have their problems, but I think China is better liked around the world these days...

[Double T]

2. It is hard to feel sorry for the Chinese Textile Industry....

...they annihilated the American Textile Industry with their slave wage labor. This is going to be big trouble down the road as China is bankrolling our huge debt.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

5. "Slave wage labor"? By American standards? You forget that the....

...Chinese cost of living is FAR lower than ours, and they need to earn FAR less to survive or even to prosper by Chinese standards.

I also read recently that the Chinese have also dropped an export tax on their products being sent to the US to make up for the import tax the US has placed on their products.

Two thirds of our trade debt is owed to the Chinese. Yes, that will DEFINITELY mean trouble down the road.

[Kire]

3. I'm sensing a pattern here

Call it a disturbance in the force...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=116&topic_id=10229&mesg_id=10229

[aquart]

4. They can take any line they want.

They have our entire textile industry. We can deal with them or go naked.