The transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP) : challenges and opportunities for the internal market and consumer protection in the area of textiles and labelling : in-depth analysis

The paper, produced by Policy Department A for the IMCO committee, analyses opportunities and challenges of TTIP for the EU in textile and clothing (T&C). This area differs from other industrial sectors in that average tariff levels are relatively high and a number of tariff peaks still exist. It would not be difficult to negotiate the complete phase out of all tariff barriers and obtain gains for consumers and firms. A more challenging task will be to tackle the existing high level of non-tariff barriers. To be able to exploit the potential gains from trade liberalization, the challenge for EU negotiators is to enter a regulatory cooperation game with the US while maintaining the high level of health and environment protection achieved in the EU.