U.S. cotton exports to RI not at risk after Aussie pact
U.S. cotton exports to RI not at risk after Aussie pact
WASHINGTON (Reuters): U.S. cotton exports to Indonesia will
not waiver even though Australia is providing trade assistance
for its own exports to the Asian country, industry officials said
Wednesday.
If anything, such a move may help U.S. markets if it boosts
the economy in Indonesia, Neal Gillen, Executive Vice President
of the American Cotton Shippers Association, said.
"It'll help Indonesia, and by helping Indonesia, in the long
run, it helps everyone," he said.
Other experts said that U.S. cotton exports are doing so well
despite the Asian financial crisis that the Australia agreement
will not put a dent in U.S. sales.
"The U.S. is having a great year in terms of exports," Terry
Townsend, statistician with the International Cotton Advisory
Committee, said.
The Australian government announced Wednesday that it will
underwrite exports to Indonesia through its Export Finance and
Insurance Corp. The move was partly prompted by U.S. export
credit programs to Asia, which Australia has said are aggressive
maneuvers to increase U.S. farm exports.
The United States has offered $400 million in short-term GSM-
102 credits on sales to Indonesia. So far, only $2.13 million has
been recorded for cotton sales, a U.S. Agriculture Department
aide said.
U.S. cotton exports to Indonesia accounted for approximately 8
percent of total U.S. cotton exports in the 1996/97 marketing
year when the United States exported 510,900 480 lb-bales to
Indonesia, another USDA aide said.
Australia, however, exports more than one-quarter of its
cotton to Indonesia, Townsend said.
Complaint
Australia would consider complaining to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) over the aggressive trade push into Asia by
the U.S. through an exports credit scheme, Prime Minister John
Howard said in Canberra yesterday.
"I don't rule anything out," Howard said when asked if he
would take matters to the WTO, the world's trade governing body.
"The Americans have not been reluctant to take us to the World
Trade Organization. The Americans played hardball over Howe
Leather, and the Australian government's first responsibility is
to protect the interests of Australian jobs and Australian
exporters," Howard told reporters.
Australia was forced to revamp its assistance to Melbourne-
based car upholstery firm Howe Leather last year after Washington
complained to the WTO.
The U.S. is offering about US$2 billion in export credits to
financially-stricken Asian countries to help them buy U.S. farm
products.
On Wednesday, Howard called the U.S. export scheme "actively
avaricious", citing it as a reason for his decision to extend
Australia's export underwriting package to include Indonesia.
That line was backed by industry. Cotton Australia chief
executive Gary Punch said the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) was "behaving like looters after a cyclone in the
Indonesian market".
On Thursday, Howard said the government was gathering evidence
about what the Americans were doing, and would then consider its
response.
Howard also said Canberra had not yet decided if the U.S.
scheme breached WTO rules.
"That's something that we're assessing," he said.