Brussels, 01/03/2001 (Agence Europe) - The EU/Sri Lanka agreement reducing trade barriers in the textiles sector has been approved by the Council and takes effect on 1 March. The EU suspends four quotas on Sri Lankan exports of: trousers (category 6), cotton blouses (category 7), cotton shirts (category 8), anoraks (category 21). For its part, Sri Lanka has consolidated within the WTO sectoral customs duties on several imports from the EU and reduced a certain number of tariff peaks (see EUROPE of 16 December, p.15). Initialled in December last, this agreement is the first in a series of bilateral negotiations conducted by the EU to integrate textiles in the general rules of the WTO, in compliance with the Textiles and Clothing Agreement concluded in the framework of the Uruguay Round.
Last November, the Council had given the Commission a brief to negotiate the lifting of import restrictions on 65 categories of textile and clothing products originating from WTO member countries (see EUROPE of 15 November, p.9). The liberalisation, that should be achieved on 1 January 2002, represents 21.8% of the value of Community imports in 1999.
Sri Lanka is the EU's 20th provider of textile products. In 1999, EU imports of Sri Lankan textiles amounted to 707 million euro, and exports to Sri Lanka 92 million.