Grant Nülle Archive
Bush Battles the Chinese Sock Threat
After five months and seven rounds of contentious negotiations, the Bush administration and the American textile lobby got what they wanted: a cap on China's booming export business in the sensitive trade. The agreement sets quotas ( or "safeguards " in security speak) for nearly half of the Chinese textile exports to America, such as bras, baby socks, bath towels, wool suits, window shades, etc.. Thus are American consumers protected from the presumed disaster of paying too little for these essentials of life. But the US textile industry will still decline. FULL ARTICLE
Knickers in a Bind
The EU has taken aim at China's textile industry. This is harmful to all parties, and, what's more, it won't actually save the EU's textile producers. There are suppliers in dozens of other countries with the cost structure capable of filling Chinas void. The global marketplace in textiles will continue to evolve according to the voluntary interactions of buyers and sellers. FULL ARTICLE
Is the Euro Forever?
Leaders of European Union member states have been reeling from the double rejection of the proposed European Constitution by two of the six founding members. Given a chance to express their opinion on “ever closer union,� for the first time in over a decade and ever, French and Dutch voters spurned the controversial text against the wishes of their countries’ political, media and commercial elite. What does this portend for the European currency? FULL ARTICLE
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