Pressure for curbs on some of China's leading clothing exporters intensified yesterday as Brussels unveiled data showing a "dramatic" surge in imports to the European Union across a range of textiles made in China.

The European Commission said it would launch an inquiry into nine categories of Chinese imports - mostly standard items of clothing such as stockings, socks, blouses, bras and T-shirts - worth €1.1bn ($1.4bn) in the first quarter. The sharpest increase concerned pullovers, where imports rose 534 per cent in the quarter.