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The Associated Press
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RALEIGH -
A North Carolina textile company said it closed two plants and laid off 200 workers this week because it couldn't find the credit it needed to keep going.Spectrum Yarns Inc. was turned down by a North Carolina bank, a New York finance company, and several private lenders, President C. Douglas Blanchard wrote in a letter to the N.C. Commerce Department announcing the mass layoffs. Other textile companies rejected a proposed partnership, the letter said.Spectrum closed its plants in Marion and Kings Mountain on Tuesday.The maker of fabrics used in mattresses, upholstery, and automotive seat covers had other problems too. The U.S. textile industry has been evaporating for years under pressure from low-cost Asian labor. "It's been slow now for three of four years," said Hubert Johnson, manager of the Kings Mountain plant. "This banking, subprime crunch really crucified us."
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Staff writer John Murawski
