Textile trade talks unravel between US and China

Textile negotiations between China and the United States ended in failure Thursday, with China warning that it would react strongly to any unilateral quotas set by Washington.

The unsuccessful talks, which will almost certainly result in the imposition of US quotas on Chinese textile exports this weekend, threatened to affect plans for a visit to China of Secretary of State George Shultz in early February.

The Chinese, who sold the US $590 million in textiles in 1981, sought terms similar to those in the expired agreement, which allowed them to expand exports in several restricted categories by 6 percent a year.