{{Short description|Former system of textile export quotas}} {{ref improve|date=April 2024}} The '''Multi Fibre Arrangement''' (MFA) governed the world trade in [[textiles]] and garments from 1974 through 1994, imposing [[wiktionary:quota|quota]]s on the amount [[developing country|developing countries]] could [[export]] to [[developed country|developed countries]]. Its successor, the [[Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC)]], expired on 1 January 2005.
==History== {{see also|History of cotton}}
Since the (re)emergence of developing countries as a source of cotton textiles, production from these countries steadily increased after [[Decolonization|colonial independence]]. A number of treaties concerning '''Short-Term Arrangements regarding International Trade in Cotton Textiles''' ([[Geneva]], 21 July 1961); '''Long-Term Arrangement regarding International Trade in Cotton Textiles''' (Geneva, 9 February 1962 and 15 June 1970), and '''Arrangement regarding International Trade in Textiles''' (Geneva, 20 December 1973) established trade rules in textiles. Eventually, the Multi Fibre Agreement was established in 1974.
==Impact== The MFA was introduced in 1974 as a short-term measure intended to allow developed countries to adjust to imports from the developing world.
At the [[General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade]] (GATT) [[Uruguay Round]], it was decided to bring the textile trade under the jurisdiction of the [[World Trade Organization]]. The Agreement on Textiles and Clothing provided for the gradual dismantling of the quotas that existed under the MFA. This process was completed on 1 January 2005. However, large tariffs remained in place on many textile products.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}
Bangladesh was expected to suffer the most from the ending of the MFA, as it was expected to face more competition, particularly from [[China]]. However, this was not the case. It turns out that even in the face of other economic giants, Bangladesh's labor is "cheaper than anywhere else in the world." While some smaller factories were documented making pay cuts and layoffs, most downsizing was essentially speculative – the orders for goods kept coming even after the MFA expired. In fact, Bangladesh's exports increased in value by about $500 million in 2006.<ref>Haider, Mahtab. "Defying predictions, Bangladesh’s garment factories thrive." The Christian Science Monitor. 7 Feb 2006. 11 Feb 2007. https://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0207/p04s02-wosc.html</ref>
==See also== * [[Quota Elimination]] * [[Outward Processing Arrangement]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [[BBC News Online]]: [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4478101.stm EU warns China on textile exports], 24 April 2005 * [[New York Times]]: [https://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/11/business/worldbusiness/11textile.html China to Limit Textile Exports to Europe], 11 June 2005 * [[BBC News Online]]: [https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4214490.stm EU and China reach textile deal], 5 September 2005 * [[Dollars & Sense]]: [http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2005/0905yearman.html Falling Off a Cliff: Millions of garment workers worldwide stand to lose their jobs with this year's changes in global textile trade rules] September/October 2005 * As regards the EU-China trade relations, see [https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=629289 Paolo Farah] (2006) [https://ssrn.com/abstract=916768 Five Years of China’s WTO Membership. EU and US Perspectives about China’s Compliance with Transparency Commitments and the Transitional Review Mechanism], ''Legal Issues of Economic Integration'', Kluwer Law International, Volume 33, Number 3, pp. 263–304. *[http://gatt.stanford.edu/bin/search/simple/process?offset=0&length=10&query=TEX.NG%2F1&search=Search Text of MFA from Stanford GATT Archive] *[http://gatt.stanford.edu/bin/search/simple/process?offset=0&length=10&query=arrangement+regarding+international+trade+in+textiles&search=Search Text of MFA plus subsequent amendments etc from GATT Archive] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070929032623/http://multifibrearrangement.g5.ro/what-do-eu-and-usa-fear-of/ MultifibRearrangement BA Thesis Blog]
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[[Category:History of international trade]] [[Category:Foreign relations of the European Union]] [[Category:Textile industry]] [[Category:International trade organizations]]