China garments released for Christmas

The United States government will release US$100 million in embargoed Chinese garments for Christmas sales, the South China Morning Post reported. It will also not impose additional safeguard quotas on 24 categories of Chinese textiles not covered in the Sino-US treaty of November 8, despite pressure from domestic producers. The decision is thought to be related to broader Sino-US trade relations, including a sale to China of US$4 billion of Boeing jets announced during US President George W Bush's visit to Beijing November 19.