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Explanatory Notes for Wool Trade Data
TITLE V OF THE TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT Summary Title V of the Trade and Development Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-200), enacted on May 18, 2000, and implemented by Presidential Proclamation 7383 of December 1, 2000, provides tariff relief to U.S. manufacturers of specific wool articles. It reduces tariffs on worsted wool fabrics used by U.S. manufacturers of men's and boys' tailored clothing and suspends tariffs on fine-micron wool yarn, fibers, and tops (average fiber diameter of 18.5 micron or less) used by U.S. producers of worsted wool fabrics and yarns for 3 years beginning on January 1, 2001. Section 503(a) of the Act requires the President to proclaim 8-digit tariff categories, without changes in existing duty rates, in chapters 51 and 62 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States in order to provide separate tariff treatment for wool yarn made of wool fiber with an average fiber diameter of 18.5 micron or less, and wool fabrics made from yarns with an average fiber diameter of 18.5 micron or less; and men's or boys' suits, suit-type jackets, and trousers of worsted wool fabric, made of wool yarn having an average diameter of 18.5 micron or less. Section 503(b) of the Act authorizes the President to make conforming changes in the HTS to take into account the new permanent tariff categories proclaimed under subsection (a). This report provides statistics on imports for consumption, on a quantity
and value basis, for yarn of combed wool, not put up for retail sale,
containing 85 percent or more by weight of wool, of wool fiber with an
average fiber diameter of 18.5 microns or less, and other (of wool fiber
with an average fiber diameter greater than 18.5 microns); woven fabrics
of combed wool or of combed fine animal hair, containing 85 percent or
more by weight of wool or of fine animal hair, of wool yarns with an average
fiber diameter of 18.5 microns or less, and other (of wool yarns with
an average fiber diameter greater than 18.5 microns); and men's and boys'
suits, suit-type jackets, and trousers, of worsted wool fabric, made of
wool yarn having an average fiber diameter of 18.5 microns or less, and
other (of wool yarn having an average fiber diameter greater than 18.5
microns). Imports for Consumption: measure of the merchandise that has physically cleared Customs either entering consumption channels immediately or entering after withdrawal from bonded warehouses under Customs custody or from Foreign Trade Zones. The value are customs value, defined as the price actually paid or payable for merchandise, excluding U.S. import duties, freight, insurance, and other charges. COMPOSITION OF DATA: 18.5 microns or finer Yarn: includes products covered in HTS subheading 5107.10.30 and 5107.20.30. Greater than 18.5 microns Yarn: includes products covered in HTS subheading 5107.10.60 and 5107.20.60. CONVERSION FACTORS Import data for yarn and men's and boys' worsted wool tailored clothing, in units, were converted to square meter equivalents (SMEs) using the following Office of Textile and Apparel conversion factors: Category 400, wool yarns, 3.70 square meters per kilogram; Category 443, men's and boys' wool suits, 3.76 square meters per unit; Category 433, men's and boys' suit-type jackets, 2.5 square meters per unit; and Category 447, men's and boys' wool trousers/breeches/shorts, 1.2 square meters per unit.
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