ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how and why the phase-out and abolition of the quota system led to new economic configurations in the textile and garment industry. It discusses the extent to which regional trade arrangements serve EU countries and the US as protectionist measures that are alternative to quota regulations. The chapter examines the extent to which such measures are challenged by low-cost manufacturers in Asia. It explains the consequences of these regional trade arrangements for industrial development in countries that are latecomers to international trade in the textile and garment industry. The chapter addresses whether such concessions and conditions are sufficient to attract buyers to source in the trading blocs when the quota system expires and price competition increases further. In textiles, the consolidation of the US-dominated bloc happened mainly at the expense of imports from Europe. In spite of regionalism, there has been a large increase in imports of Asian textiles into the US since the mid-1990s.
