NCTO Joins With Leading Manufacturing Organizations to Call for Immediate Action on Currency Manipulation
For Immediate Release
August 21, 2014
NCTO Joins With Leading Manufacturing Organizations to Call for Immediate Action on Currency Manipulation
Columbia, S.C. — The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) joined with the American Automotive Policy Council (AAPC) and the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) today to seek U.S. government action to stop currency manipulation. NCTO called upon lawmakers to adopt meaningful legislation to stop predatory currency practices and the Executive Branch to include strong and enforceable currency manipulation disciplines in all future trade agreements.
Export-oriented countries such as China and Vietnam have been shown to purposefully devalue their currency in order to promote their exports and to block imports into their markets. This practice places the entire U.S. manufacturing base at a considerable disadvantage when it comes to international trade.
During an event today in Columbia, S.C., the three organizations highlighted how unfair currency policies hurt American job creation and economic growth. According to a 2014 study by the Economic Policy Institute, ending unfair currency policies can create as many as 2.3 million new manufacturing jobs in the United States by leveling the playing field in global markets.
“NCTO is pleased to join with other major manufacturing associations to highlight the need for currency reform,” said Augustine Tantillo, President of NCTO. “Currency manipulation distorts the global marketplace and puts American workers at a disadvantage. NCTO calls upon congressional leaders to support legislative initiatives that create tangible remedies for U.S. manufacturers that have been damaged by unfair currency practices.”
“Currency manipulation affects all U.S. manufacturing,” Tantillo continued, “As a result, we need a bipartisan solution that involves both the Legislative and Executive Branches of our government.”
The U.S. textile and apparel industries employ nearly 500,000 workers in the United States, including 19,400 textile industry jobs in South Carolina.