KARACHI, July 30: A crucial but an unexpceted meeting has been convened on Monday by the WTO's director general Supachai Panitchpakdi for exploring ways and means for delaying textile quotas ' elimination when less than six months are left for the WTO's quota free era.

Exporters of textile items to US and the European Union (EU) expressing their utter surprise over the meeting told Dawn this was contrary to the interest of those countries who have already made huge investments in this sector during last five years.

Though the nature of Monday's meeting in Geneva was informal but exporters believe that it was a first step towards success for those textile lobbies opposing the removal of quotas in the United States and the European Union.

The WTO's director general Supachai Panitchpakdi is reported to have invited ambassadors of 19 nations at an informal meeting on August 3. The meeting is expected to focus on a single item agenda of convening an emergency meeting of all WTO's members in September in order to discuss a possible delay in textile quotas' elimination.

Exporters say that the West had been striving hard to get some excuse for delaying the removal of quotas which they now are doing under the cover of those countries producing low cost textile goods.

It is generally felt that this was the first victory for the US and the EU on holding such a meeting only five months ahead of the deadline set under the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC).

It is alarming that when no WTO member state has officially asked for the postponement in the implementation of the ATC, therefore, convening of a meeting by the director general of the WTO is being taken as a move by the West to delay the quotas' elimination beyond January 1, 2005, exporter said.

The decision to remove quotas was part of the Morrocon agreement, ending the Uruguay Round of negotiations at the end of 1994. The ATC included phasing out of textile quotas by the US, EU and Canada by the end of current year (2004).

In order to discuss the need for an emergency meeting, WTO's director general invited delegates from China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Dominican Republic and Mauritius.

According to textile exporters the EU and US are using those countries for seeking delay in elimination of quotas whose economies are heavily dependent upon this sector for substantial export earnings and employment.

However, countries like China, India and Pakistan strongly oppose any postponement in quotas' elimination. Despite the fact that a number of countries will face tough competition from China but they argue any surge in orders would result in much higher cotton prices in China.

They further believe that it will also induce higher wages and Chinese exporters would be forced to shift to higher priced products giving a way to low-cost textile products coming from countries like Bangladesh, Mauritius and Vietnam