TNAG-0147-FCO40-183-Exports-of-textiles-to-United-States-of-America-1969 — Page 74

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changes in consumer taste and imports moved in to satisfy

demand.

87.

Mr. Nehmer did not think the figures bore this

thesis out. For example in the year ending August 1969,

the U.S. had imported the following quantities of cotton

and man made fibre apparel: knit shirts: 567,000 dozen

cotton, 584,000 dozen m.n.f.; dress shirts: 801,000 dozen

cotton, 1,179,000 dozen m.n.f.; blouses: 983,000 dozen

cotton, 479,000 dozen m.n.f.; dresses: 103,000 dozen

cotton, 58,000 dozen m.m.f.; other shirts: 800,000 dozen

cotton, 690,000 dozen m.n.f.; gloves: 516,000 dozen cotton,

902,000 dozen m.m.f. It seemed to him an anomaly that in

many cases imports of m.m.f. should exceed imports of the

restrained identical cotton item. Mr. Jordan said the

anomaly was that the cotton imports should be restrained.

88.

Sir Eugene Melville thanked the U.S. Government

representatives for the care with which they had presented

the additional information on the state of the U.S. industry.

If the U.S. Government was to raise the problems which it

faced, in the G.A.T.T., the U.K. and H.K. Governments would

of course be ready to consider them in that form. He

pointed out that the G.A.T.T. did not provide for antici-

patory action but for immediate specific action. The

selective approach, in his view took account of the G.A.T.T.

whilst the proposals for a comprehensive bilateral

/agreement

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