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EU to free textiles
6/9/2005 17:34

Chen Liying/Shanghai Daily news

China and the European Union reached an agreement last night in Beijing to unblock millions of Chinese textile products held up at EU ports over a trade dispute.
The deal, signed by EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson and Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai, would allow some 80 million stranded Chinese bras, pants and T-shirts valued at 400 million euros (US$501 million) to enter the European market.
The agreement now goes before the 25 members of the trade bloc for final approval.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair, in Beijing for a China-EU Summit, said the row over the export quotas underlined the need for Britain and Europe to adapt in the face of hugely competitive economies. 
Blair, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency, said Europe must pick up the gauntlet and accept the challenge of change to cope with the emergence of economic powerhouses such as China and India.
"There is, of course, a place for managing change. There is no place for resisting change," Blair told yesterday's summit, which produced a deal to help China reduce greenhouse gas emissions and a contract for European plane maker Airbus.
Under the textile pact, the EU agreed to increase import quotas to accommodate half of the stranded goods.
Extra quotas for the other half will be borrowed from China's allotment for next year, or transferred from categories that haven't exceeded this year's limits.
The deal was reached after a round of talks that began on Sunday. Both delegations were trying to revise an agreement in June that capped the import growth of 10 categories of Chinese textiles at between 8 percent and 12.5 percent.
Those limits, imposed to protect European manufacturers following the elimination of a global quota system on January 1, were quickly exceeded.
As shipments of Chinese goods piled up on European docks, many EU retailers urged their orders to be released.
"The agreement is fair and reasonable both in its principles and details," Bo said.
In a separate deal that could be signed today, China Southern Airlines, the country's biggest carrier, will agree to buy 10 A330 jets from Airbus at a listed price of about US$1.3 billion, said a source close to Airbus.
To help tackle climate change, the EU agreed to give China the technology for a clean coal-power station that will allow it to capture and store carbon dioxide emissions in rocks to reduce pollution.
Blair said China would participate in talks to address climate change, one of the priorities of Britain's EU presidency and its chairmanship of the Group of Eight rich nations this year.
President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao held talks with Blair and exchanged views on China-EU relations and major international affairs of mutual concern, according to Xinhua news agency.
China and the EU pledged to further the strategic partnership and deepen cooperation in politics, economy, transport, environmental protection, technology, culture and international and regional affairs.