US to review textile petitions on China

The Bush administration said Wednesday it has accepted petitions from the US textile industry to investigate whether quotas should be imposed on 21 categories of Chinese-imported clothing and textile, The AP reported. The decision further intensifies a trade row between China and the US, which could ultimately pressure China to settle the dispute through a comprehensive deal to avoid further individual quota cases. Both sides said last week they had made progress in their third round of talks on reaching a comprehensive deal to limit Chinese textile imports, which have flooded the US since global quotas ended in January. More talks are expected this month.