European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson has expressed his opposition to restoring quotas on Chinese textile imports and called for liberalising trade services with Arab countries. Mandelson was speaking on Saturday at the World Economic Forum meeting on the Jordanian shores of the Dead Sea a day after China announced measures to limit its booming textile exports to head off a simmering trade dispute. Facing the threat of EU limits on Chinese textiles imports, Beijing announced it would raise export tariffs on 74 categories of textile products from June 1.
"The EU does not want to restore import quotas on clothing and textiles that were abolished from the start of this year but seeks agreement with Beijing on ensuring a slower transition to open markets," Mandelson said.
"The transition has to be managed. We have to make it smooth. It is not a question of restoring quotas," he told a panel discussion at the forum, according to a statement released by the organisers of the meeting.
Mandelson also said he hoped to get a green light from the 25-member EU to open negotiations with Arab countries to liberalise trade in services.
"Services are an area of tremendous potential for you," he said to an audience which included Egyptian Trade and Economy Minister Rashid and his United Arab Emirates counterpart Sheikha Lubna al-Qasimi.
"With liberalisation your current trade in services could be two or three times more," Mandelson said.
The EU has partnership agreements with eight Arab countries, the Palestinian Authority and Israel as part of the so-called Barcelona Process launched in 1995 to strengthen relations.
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