We hope the US government will take a stand conducive to developing Sino-US trade by reconsidering the decision and rescinding the quota, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation said.
Otherwise, the Chinese government will be compelled to make a necessary response and the US side should bear all the consequences, the official Xinhua news agency quoted the spokesman as saying.
The door was open for consultations to reach a conclusion satisfactory to both sides, the spokesman said. Acting US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky announced in Washington on Friday punitive charges against China's 1996 textile and apparel quotas, citing transshipments of Chinese textiles in violation of a 1994 trade agreement. China had denied the accusation and asked the United States to provide further evidence, Xinhua said.
Washington had not only failed to provide proof, but had decided to take unilateral action to slash China's textile quotas, the spokesman said, adding that the Chinese government firmly refuses to accept the US action.
The quota cuts were a serious violation of the textiles agreement, the spokesman said.
The action