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US textile groups oppose KORUS FTA
04 Feb '11
2 min read
Five textile groups that stand for the interests of the US textile sector have forwarded a letter to the Congress members, requesting them to stop the pending the US-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS), and have also launched a campaign to gain support of the society at large in this drive of opposing the agreement.
Officials of the American Fiber Manufacturers Association (AFMA), National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition (AMTAC), U.S. Industrial Fabrics Institute (USIFI) and National Textile Association (NTA), inked a letter last month, which laid charges that the trade agreement is highly inconsistent, and stated that the same may lead to prolonged outsourcing of expensive textile, manufacturing and apparel jobs.
The US and South Korea concluded their negotiations on the deal in December last year, and now the deal has been laid open for public opinion.
As stated by the Obama government, the pact is likely to take the US exports to $11 billion and generate about 70,000 jobs in the industry.
The letter contests the government's employment generation claims and even provided reference of the data released by an Economic Policy Institute stating that, if the pact is implemented in its present form it would take away around 159,000 jobs in the US, including 9,300 to 12,300 jobs directly attributable to the textile industry and 40,000 other allied jobs directly or indirectly associated with the textile and apparel activities.
NCTO, in order to gain support of the textile sector at large for stopping the implementation of KORUS, has conducted a petition campaign through which it would gather signatures of people who are against the implementation of the pact.
Officials of the American Fiber Manufacturers Association (AFMA), National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition (AMTAC), U.S. Industrial Fabrics Institute (USIFI) and National Textile Association (NTA), inked a letter last month, which laid charges that the trade agreement is highly inconsistent, and stated that the same may lead to prolonged outsourcing of expensive textile, manufacturing and apparel jobs.
The US and South Korea concluded their negotiations on the deal in December last year, and now the deal has been laid open for public opinion.
As stated by the Obama government, the pact is likely to take the US exports to $11 billion and generate about 70,000 jobs in the industry.
The letter contests the government's employment generation claims and even provided reference of the data released by an Economic Policy Institute stating that, if the pact is implemented in its present form it would take away around 159,000 jobs in the US, including 9,300 to 12,300 jobs directly attributable to the textile industry and 40,000 other allied jobs directly or indirectly associated with the textile and apparel activities.
NCTO, in order to gain support of the textile sector at large for stopping the implementation of KORUS, has conducted a petition campaign through which it would gather signatures of people who are against the implementation of the pact.
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