03-26425. Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Cotton, Wool and Man-Made Fiber Textiles and Textile Products and Silk Blend and Other Vegetable Fiber Apparel Produced or Manufactured in Malaysia

October 14, 2003.

AGENCY:

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION:

Issuing a directive to the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection establishing limits.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

January 1, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ross Arnold, International Trade Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, [phone]. For information on the quota status of these limits, refer to the Quota Status Reports posted on the bulletin boards of each Customs port, call [phone], or refer to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection website at http://www.customs.gov. For information on embargoes and quota re-openings, refer to the Office of Textiles and Apparel website at http://otexa.ita.doc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended.

The import restraint limits for textile products, produced or manufactured in Malaysia and exported during the period January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2004 are based on limits notified to the Textiles Monitoring Body pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC).

In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to establish the 2004 limits. Carryforward applied to the 2003 limits is being deducted from the 2004 limits.

These limits are subject to adjustment pursuant to the provisions of the ATC and administrative arrangements notified to the Textiles Monitoring Body. However, as the ATC and all restrictions thereunder will terminate on January 1, 2005, no adjustment for carryforward (borrowing from next year's limits for use in the current year) will be available.

A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS numbers is available in the Correlation: Textile and Apparel Categories with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal Register notice 68 FR 1599, published on January 13, 2003). Information regarding the 2004 Correlation will be published in the Federal Register at a later date.

James C. Leonard III,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

October 14, 2003.

Commissioner,

Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Washington, DC 20229.

Dear Commissioner: Pursuant to section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended; and the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC), you are directed to prohibit, effective on January 1, 2004, entry into the United States for consumption and withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of cotton, wool and man-made fiber textiles and textile products and silk blend and other vegetable fiber apparel in the following categories, produced or manufactured in Malaysia and exported during the twelve-month period beginning on January 1, 2004 and extending through December 31, 2004, in excess of the following limits:

Category	Twelve-month restraint limit
Fabric Group
218-220, 225-227, 313-326, 611-O 1, 613/614/615/617, 619 and 620, as a group	217,632,182 square meters equivalent.
Sublevels within the group
218	12,486,665 square meters.
219	60,490,956 square meters.
220	60,490,956 square meters.
225	60,490,956 square meters.
226	60,490,956 square meters.
227	60,490,956 square meters.
313	72,145,175 square meters.
314	86,796,101 square meters.
315	60,490,956 square meters.
317	60,490,956 square meters.
326	11,697,587 square meters.
611-O	7,018,553 square meters.
613/614/615/617	69,436,883 square meters.
619	9,358,070 square meters.
620	11,697,587 square meters.
Other specific limits
200	526,555 kilograms.
237	708,479 dozen.
300/301	5,282,976 kilograms.
331pt./631pt. 2	982,465 dozen pairs.
333/334/335	439,597 dozen of which not more than 263,836 dozen shall be in Category 333.
336/636	853,731 dozen.
338/339	2,002,242 dozen.
340/640	2,465,429 dozen.
341/641	3,195,288 dozen of which not more than 1,139,921 dozen shall be in Category 341.
342/642	762,971 dozen.
345	293,484 dozen.
347/348	848,553 dozen.
351/651	449,238 dozen.
363	7,439,664 numbers.
435	17,028 dozen.
438-W 3	13,935 dozen.
442	20,751 dozen.
445/446	32,939 dozen.
604	2,448,774 kilograms.
634/635	1,491,336 dozen.
638/639	878,508 dozen.
645/646	671,934 dozen.
647/648	3,162,056 dozen of which not more than 2,213,435 dozen shall be in Category 647-K 4 and not more than 2,213,435 dozen shall be in Category 648-K 5.
Group II
201, 224, 239pt 6, 332, 352, 359pt. 7, 360-362, 369pt. 8, 400-414, 433, 434, 436, 438-O 9, 440, 443, 444, 447, 448, 459pt. 10, 469pt. 11, 603, 618, 624-629, 633, 643, 644, 652, 659pt. 12, 666pt. 13, 845, 846 and 852, as a group	32,342,281 square meters equivalent.
1 Category 611-O: all HTS numbers except 5516.14.0005, 5516.14.0025 and 5516.14.0085.
2 Category 331pt.: all HTS numbers except 6116.10.1720, 6116.10.4810, 6116.10.5510, 6116.10.7510, 6116.92.6410, 6116.92.6420, 6116.92.6430, 6116.92.6440, 6116.92.7450, 6116.92.7460, 6116.92.7470, 6116.92.8800, 6116.92.9400 and 6116.99.9510.; Category 631pt.: all HTS numbers except 6116.10.1730, 6116.10.4820, 6116.10.5520, 6116.10.7520, 6116.93.8800, 6116.93.9400, 6116.99.4800, 6116.99.5400 and 6116.99.9530.
3 Category 438-W: only HTS numbers 6104.21.0060, 6104.23.0020, 6104.29.2051, 6106.20.1010, 6106.20.1020, 6106.90.1010, 6106.90.1020, 6106.90.2520, 6106.90.3020, 6109.90.1540, 6109.90.8020, 6110.11.0080, 6110.12.2080, 6110.19.0080, 6110.30.1560, 6110.90.9074 and 6114.10.0040.
4 Category 647-K: only HTS numbers 6103.23.0040, 6103.23.0045, 6103.29.1020, 6103.29.1030, 6103.43.1520, 6103.43.1540, 6103.43.1550, 6103.43.1570, 6103.49.1020, 6103.49.1060, 6103.49.8014, 6112.12.0050, 6112.19.1050, 6112.20,.1060 and 6113.00.9044.
5 Category 648-K: only HTS numbers 6104.23.0032, 6104.23.0034, 6104.29.1030, 6104.29.1040, 6104.29.2038, 6104.63.2006, 6104.63.2011, 6104.63.2026, 6104.63.2028, 6104.63.2030, 6104.63.2060, 6104.69.2030, 6104.69.2060, 6104.69.8026, 6112.12.0060, 6112.19.1060, 6112.20.1070, 6113.00.9052 and 6117.90.9070.
6 Category 239pt.: only HTS number 6209.20.5040 (diapers).
7 Category 359pt.: all HTS numbers except 6115.19.8010, 6117.10.6010, 6117.20.9010, 6203.22.1000, 6204.22.1000, 6212.90.0010, 6214.90.0010, 6406.99.1550, 6505.90.1525, 6505.90.1540, 6505.90.2060 and 6505.90.2545.
8  Category 369pt.: all HTS numbers except 4202.12.4000, 4202.12.8020, 4202.12.8060, 4202.22.4020, 4202.22.4500, 4202.22.8030, 4202.32.4000, 4202.32.9530, 4202.92.0505, 4202.92.1500, 4202.92.3016, 4202.92.6091, 5601.10.1000, 5601.21.0090, 5701.90.1020, 5701.90.2020, 5702.10.9020, 5702.39.2010, 5702.49.1020, 5702.49.1080, 5702.59.1000, 5702.99.1010, 5702.99.1090, 5705.00.2020, 5805.00.3000, 5807.10.0510, 5807.90.0510, 6301.30.0010, 6301.30.0020, 6302,51.1000, 6302.51.2000, 6302.51.3000, 6302.51.4000, 6302.60.0010, 6302.60.0030, 6302.91.0005, 6302.91.0025, 6302.91.0045, 6302.91.0050, 6302.91.0060, 6303.11.0000, 6303.91.0010, 6303.91.0020, 6304.91.0020, 6304.92.0000, 6305.20.0000, 6306.11.0000, 6307.10.1020, 6307.10.1090, 6307.90.3010, 6307.90.4010, 6307.90.5010, 6307.90.8910, 6307.90.8945, 6307.90.9882, 6406.10.7700, 9404.90.1000, 9404.90.8040 and 9404.90.9505.
9 Category 438-O: only HTS numbers 6103.21.0050, 6103.23.0025, 6105.20.1000, 6105.90.1000, 6105.90.8020, 6109.90.1520, 6110.11.0070, 6110.12.2070, 6110.19.0070, 6110.30.1550, 6110.90.9072, 6114.10.0020 and 6117.90.9025.
10 Category 459pt.: all HTS numbers except 6115.19.8020, 6117.10.1000, 6117.10.2010, 6117.20.9020, 6212.90.0020, 6214.20.0000, 6405.20.6030, 6405.20.6060, 6405.20.6090, 6406.99.1505, 6406.99.1560.
11 Category 469pt.: all HTS numbers except 5601.29.0020, 5603.94.1010, 6304.19.3040, 6304.91.0050, 6304.99.1500, 6304.99.6010, 6308.00.0010 and 6406.10.9020.
12 Category 659pt.: all HTS numbers except 6115.11.0010, 6115.12.2000, 6117.10.2030, 6117.20.9030, 6212.90.0030, 6214.30.0000, 6214.40.0000. 6406.99.1510 and 6406.99.1540.
13 Category 666pt.: all HTS numbers except 5805.00.4010, 6301.10.0000, 6301.40.0010, 6301.40.0020, 6301.90.0010, 6302.53.0010, 6302.53.0020, 6302.53.0030, 6302.93.1000, 6302.93.2000, 6303.12.0000, 6303.19.0010, 6303.92.1000, 6303.92.2010, 6303.92.2020, 6303.99.0010, 6304.11.2000, 6304.19.1500, 6304.19.2000, 6304.91.0040, 6304.93.0000, 6304.99.6020, 6307.90.9884, 9404.90.8522 and 9404.90.9522.

The limits set forth above are subject to adjustment pursuant to the provisions of the ATC and administrative arrangements notified to the Textiles Monitoring Body.

Products in the above categories exported during 2003 shall be charged to the applicable category limits for that year (see the October 9, 2002 directive) to the extent of any unfilled balances. In the event the limits established for that period have been exhausted by previous entries, such products shall be charged to the limits set forth in this directive.

In carrying out the above directions, the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection should construe entry into the United States for consumption to include entry for consumption into the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has determined that these actions fall within the foreign affairs exception of the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).

Sincerely,

James C. Leonard III,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.