U.S. Customs Steps Up Pressure On Hong Kong in Textile Battle
May 12, 2011
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. is turning up the pressure on Hong Kong in its battle against illegal textile trans-shipments despite the territory's earlier offer of a truce. In a notice published Thursday in the U.S. Federal Register, the U.S. Customs Service said it will place four categories of Hong Kong products on a ``watch list'' in order to determine whether any of them are entering the U.S. under false declarations of origin. The shipments will be monitored for a 30-day period starting Sunday, and if the surveillance ``points to the probability of trans-shipment,'' they will be subject to the same restrictive measures that already are being applied to 10 other categories of Hong Kong textile products, the notice indicated. Affected by the expanded antitrans-shipment campaign are Hong Kong's shipments of cotton gloves, cotton knit shirts, women's cotton pants and cotton dressing gowns. Earlier this year, U.S. Customs investigators claimed they had ``uncovered evidence'' that some products of these kinds that were shipped from Macau really originated in China. The agency indicated in the notice its suspicions that Chinese-made products in the four categories are similarly entering the U.S. with false Hong Kong labels. Additional Requirements The Hong Kong government, reacting to the U.S. Customs announcement, said it is ``disappointed'' with this move in the light of its offer to allow U.S. customs agents to inspect certain Hong Kong garment factories under what it calls a ``joint visit program.'' By permitting such joint inspections, Hong Kong had hoped to induce the U.S. Customs service to lift the additional costs and paperwork that have been imposed on the 10 textile categories since June. The additional requirements involve higher bonding costs, certifications by importers that visa declarations are accurate and original signatures of factory managers or subcontractors on declarations filed by importers. A U.S. Customs spokeswoman said the establishment of a watch list is ``apart from the continuing negotiations we are having with Hong Kong'' on joint factory inspections. The notice was published simply to ``give importers a warning,'' she added. ``Just because we've given this warning doesn't necessarily mean that (the additional restrictions) will be taken.'' Trade Data Is Offered Hong Kong acknowledged it had been forewarned of U.S. plans to move against the four additional categories. ``The U.S. Customs have told us informally that they had concerns with possible illegal trans-shipments involving those four categories, and they were thinking of doing something, including putting them on a `watch list','' said a Hong Kong spokesman. Hong Kong has offered to exchange trade data with the U.S. in order to satisfy U.S. concerns. ``We have further said that while such exchanges were in process, the U.S. should not take action such as putting the products on a watch list,'' the spokesman said. In the meantime, U.S. textile importers are hurting as the diplomatic wrangling drags on inconclusively. Brett Reinaldo, a lawyer for the U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel, said she couldn't understand the U.S. Customs' concern about the four textile categories. ``Imports of those categories from both Hong Kong and China are down from what they were in 1995,'' she said. Hong Kong's exports of products in the four categories to the U.S. hit HK$6.7 billion last year, 18% of the territory's total textiles and clothing imports to the U.S.
