Details of last month's Sino-US textile agreement that have just emerged indicate certain Chinese products are expected to triple their market share in America over the next few years.

Details of last month's Sino-US textile agreement indicate certain Chinese products are expected to triple their market share in America over the next few years. [newsphoto]

The agreement will allow Chinese textile exports to the United States to increase by 10 to 17 per cent annually from 2006 to 2008.

The deal was signed by Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai and US Trade Representative Rob Portman on November 8 in London.

According to the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), the deal will boost the market share of 21 categories of Chinese textile products in the United States.

Their market share will rise to 19.8 per cent by 2008 from 6.7 per cent in 2004.

Chinese cotton shirts are expected to take 7.7 per cent of the market by 2008 from 0.9 per cent in 2004. Cotton trousers will increase to 17 per cent by 2008 from 1.5 per cent in 2004.

Exports to the United States this year were taken as the base figure to calculate next year's. Future years' exports will be based on the previous year's level.

The removal of global textile quotas was also taken into consideration.

The official said items covered by the Sino-US pact were similar to those under an agreement reached between China and the European Union in June, which covered 10 categories of textile products.

"The difference in absolute numbers resulted from a different way of calculating the items," the official said.

For example, trousers are considered to be one category in the Sino-EU agreement, but take up four categories in the deal with the United States.

The decision to expand the agreement until 2008 was made after collecting information from the domestic textile industry. The duration of the Sino-US agreement is one year longer than the deal between China and the EU.

"It brings certainty to the textile trade until 2008," the official said.

The Sino-US textile pact was welcomed by the Chinese textile industry.

Textile exporters said they did not need to worry any more about safeguard measures initiated by the US Government.

In another development, an official from the China Textile Industry Association predicted China's textile exports would hit US$116 billion this year, despite trade disputes.

This is an increase of 19.21 per cent from last year's US$97.3 billion.