China is seeking talks with the European Union and the United States to defend the surge in textile exports since the abolition of trade quotas on January 1.

　　A senior official in charge of the textile trade says China will soon send a delegation to Washington and Brussels to ward off possible restrictions.

　　China’s sales to the United States surged 65 per cent year-on-year in January, to 1.4 billion US dollars. Shipments to the European Union jumped 46 per cent to 1.5 billion US dollars.

　　The rise in exports has triggered calls from textile-importing nations for new limits to be imposed on China to protect domestic apparel industries.

　　But the official says it would be too hasty for the EU and United States to decide to implement safeguard measures just based on statistics from a single month since deeper analysis shows that this growth is normal.

　　China has also taken measures - such as a recently implemented export tax and new regulations on issuing export licenses - in an effort to ensure steady growth.

　　The industry is also studying a mechanism to guarantee exports will not be made at an unfairly low price.