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European Union (EU) Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson will make an unplanned visit to Shanghai on Friday to discuss Chinese textile exports to the 25-nation bloc, the European Commission said on Thursday.
A spokesperson for the European bloc said Mandelson is to meet Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai "to find a mutually agreeable solution to deal with the market situation in the EU" following the expiry of the quota system on January 1, 2005.
"The meeting in Shanghai is an opportunity to reach a mutually acceptable solution before the EU decides on safeguard measures," the spokesperson added.
In a speech made this week, Mandelson rejected a return to the quota system for textiles, saying his policy is based on the need to "manage change and adjustment, rather than to manage trade" -- preferably through a negotiated agreement.
The EU has claimed that textiles imports from China to the EU have substantially increased this year.
Mandelson seeks enduring agreement with China on textiles
Mandelson said in Brussels that he was trying to find an enduring agreement with China before he left for Shanghai on textile negotiation.
"I am going to China either to agree a way of dealing with the dramatic textile import surge or, if necessary, to explain, face to face, why the EU needs to introduce measures of its own," Mandelson said in a statement.
"My preference is for an enduring agreement that brings predictability for traders in China and Europe and stability in our wider relations," he added.
The EU has requested formal consultations on two categories of textiles and has almost completed investigations of seven other categories.
The formal consultation is due to end this week.
"I want a settlement that helps everyone's interests," Mandelson said.
"We should be fair to China, while creating a much needed breathing space for European industry and offering some relief to developing country textile exports to Europe," he added.
(Xinhua News Agency June 10, 2005)
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