China has filed a compensation claim for US$14.4 million worth of substandard cotton imported last year, the State Administration of Quality Supervision and Quarantine said Tuesday.

The administration noted that there were serious quality problems, such as damaged or substandard cotton and poor fiber strength, in China's 2003 imports.

China imported US$905 million worth of cotton from other countries, including the United States, Uzbekistan, Australia, Benin and Mali.

The US was China's largest cotton exporter, providing 61 percent of China's imports. However, the US cotton was in poorest quality overall, the administration said.

In 2003, China made a claim of US$10.5 million to the US for inferior cotton, accounting for about 72 percent of the total.

The administration said that it would step up inspection of imported cotton this year to reduce unnecessary trade disputes and losses.
 
(Xinhua News Agency March 24, 2004)