Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Agreer Written by Lonnie Adamson Reprinted from Clinton Chronicle by permission - The textile import agreement signed in August with the Republic of China has placed some pressures on Clinton Mills which will make officials concentrate on improved efficiency and better ways of meeting market demands, according to Robert Vance, chairman of the board of directors of Clinton Mills. The import agreement has brought shouts of anguish from most textile producers and has been attributed at least partially with the closing of some textile operations, Vance said. The basic concern, Vance said, is that the new agreement, which establishes quotas for China's textile imports, simply allows too manv imports. The agreement also leaves a majority of categories without regulations. In a speculative assessment of the agreement, Vance said, the China negotiations seem to have alerted minor textile-producing countries to the availability of the American market. The agreement signed in August stems from lengthy negotiations which followed the December 1982 expiration of the previous import agreement with the Chinese. Following the expiration, the United CLINTON miiic; ?n<pesu(H 2ualdy tyahuoL V Display Tells Clinton Mills, in cooperation with M.S. Bailey and Son, Bankers, Laurens and Clinton, recently displayed a variety of specially designed textile garments in promotion of the textile industry and in support of the industry's "Made In The U.S.A." campaign. "The displays were arranged by Gail Begley of Gail's Interiors, Clinton, to present to the public garments which she has created from Clinton Mills' fabrics," said Chairman Robert M. Vance. The textile activities during Oct. afforded the industry as excellent opportunity to "show off" its products. "It is important that we realize the outstanding craftmanship which goes into the apparel products made in the U.S.A.," Vance said "Mrs. Begley is a talented designer, mod el and interior decorator. She combined all these talents in creating an attractive display for Clinton Mills," said Vance. "The fabric which she used for these highfashion dresses was made by men and I women in our area who depend on the textile ' industry for their living. Foreign, imported goods are a serious threat toall textile jobsas well as those in related industries. Imports of all kinds adversely affect our local, state and national economies," he added. nent Pres States instituted a set of quotas, including a limit of 92, 500,000 square yards of a particular variety of printcloth, which regulated imports from China during the necntiainns Printcloth is Clinton Mills' chief product. According to industry officials, the newly negotiated quotas allow a three to four percent increase overall each year in imports of textiles in the 33 categories covered under the agreement. In announcing the agreement, government officials estimated the annual China import growth at two to three percent. Josh Hamilton, one of Clinton Mills' most knowledgable officials on import agreements, said that the government figures don't include what he called China's "front-end bonus," the increase from the 1983 unilateral quotas to the 1983 negotiated quotas. The government advertises a 3.8 percent increase in the last three years of the new agreement, Hamilton said. Itdoesn't mantirtn fhn i n it i o I 1 7 R norront inmn in iiiciuiuii iiic iiimai a I . jump in the overall quota and the 2 percent jump in one type of printcloth, he said. In recent years, he said, the domestic market for such cloth has grown only 1.5 to 2 percent, which means that the Chinese are increasing their share of the U.S. market. In addition to what textile officials see as excessive quotas, Vance said the ma ?loim NOVEMBER 1983 "Made in U.S., gm } lr" ^ T? Mack Karsons ana Jonn uickens exar Clinton Mills has been using public appearances, displays and the news media to increase the public's awareness of the superior quality of craftmanship which goes ?sures T( jority of 109 textile and apparel categories are covered by no quotas. This allows the possibility of expansion by the Republic of China into those unlimited categories. Vance said that the aereement also alerts other minor textile-producing countries that the market is available. Many of the minor countries are not restricted in the amount of textiles they may export to the United States. The recent negotiations, Vance said, might indicate the little difficulty these countries would have if faced with quota negotiations. Hamilton said the government considers placing quotas following a petition by industry interests to establish quotas for a certain country. One of the key characteristics of China and other Southeast Asian textile producers allowing them to penetrate the U.S. market is low production costs. Vance said. Maniifarturino nnoratinnc in tho rvmr If'UIIU IUWIUI l< <5 UHV> < J II" VHV ^WVf er countries often pay from $.38 to $.74 per hour to apparel workers. Hamilton said. The average textile wage in the United States is more than $6 per hour. $5 is apparel average. U.S. manufacturers also face health and safety standards not faced by Asian manufacturers. The Chinese government also gives its manufacturing operations a subsidy for i i/rn Bs?ndF?' t v w c-iiifjiuyecs ui V I \ I \ Clinton Mills I Story WflBlik I nine Clinton's "Made in USA" display. into American-made apparel products. "Mrs Begley, through her interior decor tion business, designed a mini room settii (Continued on page 16) jxtiles me gooas wey sen in me unueu owics, Vance said. The subsidy is in the form of a bonus in the currency exchange rates offered textile manufacturers. Manufacturers can receive 40 percent more for their dollars exchanged into Chinese currency than can the average Chinese, he said. The various factors which reduces production costs for importers place pressure on the U.S. manufacturers to lower its per-unit cost of goods by improving its efficiency of operation. At one time the quality of many foreign-made goods didn't match the quality of American-made goods, but Vance said, "Unfortunately that is no longer true." The quality factor also places pressure on U.S. manufacturers to maintain quali ly in iid ffuiix. Although he said that Clinton Mills always tries to improve its efficiency, he admitted that the ramifications of the textile import agreement would force Clinton Mills into a more concentrated effort to improve efficiency, including capital expenditures for new machinery. Officials will also be concentrating on improving the marketability of its fabrics and meeting the desires of fabric customers with the development of new styles and textures of cloth. To: Clinton Employees This is a special edition of The Clothmak? er. Its purpose is to better acquaint you with me many activities in wmcn v^iimun iviiiib i:? participating to promote our industry's "Crafted with Pride in USA" program. As you read your favorite newspapers, watch television, or listen to the radio. I encourage you to pay attention to the emphasis being placed in supporting "American" industry All of you are aware that imported textile and apparel goodsare increasingat alarming rates and are costing thousands of people their jobs. Foreign imported goods are a se rious threat to our economic future, and se verely weaken the manufacturing base of this country. When you and vour family are shopping. I/-** wAur mf 111 rric*r/~ h ta nt L nrvvAi nf Aur Hoc i rp t n I'd JTUU i ician intiviium nnv?? wi uv,^nV i w buy American made products. Look for the "Made in USA" labels. Our "Crafted with Pride in USA" slogan reflects the true attitude that has made this country so great This statement reflects the quality which each of us puts into the products we help to make I sincerely hope this edition of The Cloth ImaKer win increase your awareness ana appreciation of the many things we are doing to help curb the growth of imported fabric and apparel items. Sincerely a. /^r^v//>1 th ????ig Robert M Vance Chairman