The Liberal Democratic Party on Thursday endorsed a plan to delay for six months a decision on whether to restrict towel imports from China and Vietnam.

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry explained the plan to the Special Committee on Textiles, part of the LDP Policy Research Council, using trade data showing recent falls in towel imports.

The decision was slated to be made Monday, the deadline for the ministry's six-month investigation into the feasibility of invoking so-called safeguard restrictions under the rules of the World Trade Organization.

The postponement will allow Japan to wait for China's entry into the WTO, expected by the end of this year at the earliest, and will reduce the possibility of retaliation.

A similar approach could be taken with a government decision, due Nov. 8, on whether to upgrade to a full measure the 200-day restrictions imposed in April on imports of stone leeks, shiitake and rushes used in tatami mats -- three farm products mainly imported from China.

The curbs developed into a tit-for-tat trade spat in June, with China retaliating by slapping 100 percent punitive tariffs on imports of Japanese motor vehicles, air conditioners and mobile phones. Japan said the step violates WTO rules.

The latest trade figures show that Japan imported 5,090 tons of towel products in August, up 2.1 percent from a year earlier but down 9.5 percent from the previous month, for the second straight month-to-month decline. Imports from China accounted for roughly 80 percent of the total.

The government opened its probe into towel imports after the Japan Towel Industrial Association, which represents 457 towel makers, said the domestic industry was being endangered by inexpensive imports.