TNAG-0145-FCO40-181-Exports-of-textiles-to-United-States-of-America-1969 — Page 12

Administration

necessary to allow the United States/to hold off all

stat

es/to

pressures from other industries for protection, and to

allow President Nixon to implement his expressed belief

in free-er International Trade. He hinted that, in practice,

the Americans would be satisfied if they could discriminate

against certain Asian low-cost producers. Other countries ·

had to chose between a multi-lateral solution, bilateral

arrangement or unilateral action by the U.S. Congress.

We told Mr. Stans that, given the rising prosperity

of the U.S. textile industry generally, and the low

proportion of imports in American textile consumption, we

saw no economic justification for restraint on non-cottons.

We doubted the value of a GATT conference, proposed by

Mr. Stans, on multi-lateral restraints. We thought that

extension of the scope of the LTA would trigger off protectionist measures around the world and would upset

relations with the LDC's and UNCTAD, We emphasised our

special concern and responsibility for Hong Kong.

When Mr. Stans visited Hong Kong in May, the authorities

←

there showed down his suggestion that they had benefitted (tet)

from the LTA on cottons and stressed that a multi-lateral

arrangement, on LTA lines, for non-cottons would spread

the virus of protectionism to the detriment of Hong Kong.

Hong Kong, with no raw materials, depended on her exports

and restrictions on her trade would be "grist to the

Communist mills".

It was pointed out that the Americans were ignoring

the damage to the smaller U.S. producers caused by the larger

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