Ministers from The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and Finland are warning that European Union limits on Chinese textiles exports will not only hurt consumers, but also lead to job cuts, as scores of European trading companies could end up bankrupt or with huge losses.

Writing in today's Financial Times, the ministers - Karien van Gennip, the Dutch trade minister, Bendt Bendtsen, the Danish economics minister, Thomas Östros, the Swedish industry and trade minister, and Paula Lehtomäki, the Finnish trade minister - urge Brussels to re-examine Chinese export quotas that were introduced "without proper regard for the realities of modern commerce".