ABSTRACT
World textile and apparel trade is governed by the Arrangement Regarding International Trade in Textiles, known as the Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA). The MFA provides guidelines for member nations regarding trade in textiles and apparel. It also provides a framework for a sustained, orderly expansion of trade in textiles and apparel, along with mechanisms to deal with imports that disrupt domestic markets. The MFA was replaced by the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which was in effect on January 1, 1995, as part of the World Trade Organization agreements. The very first sign of institutional protectionism in the textile trade was marked by the “Short Term Arrangement” (STA) of July 1961 as Japanese textile exports began to penetrate the US market in the late 1950s. With a close interindustry link between the textile sector and apparel sector, increases in imports of textiles and apparel products may have had significant impact on the structure of these sectors.
