he European Union (EU) will remove import quota restrictions on China’s textile products from next January, Wang Shouwen, director of the Ministry of Commerce’s foreign trade department said at a briefing yesterday. However, China’s textile exports to the EU are not expected to rise sharply after the quota is removed, Wang said.

"Both parties are seeking measures to guarantee steady growth in the textile trade, without generating trade frictions," he said.

China’s textile exports to the EU rose only 5.5 pct year-on-year in the first five months, Wang added.