BEIJING -
In advance of President Hu Jintao's visit to the
US, scheduled for April 20, Chinese media reports
hailed the growth of China-US economic relations
over the last 20 years, and China's government
announced a variety of US trade-related measures,
including the lifting of a ban of US beef exports
to China and a deal to buy 80 additional 737
aircraft from US aircraft maker Boeing.
China-US trade growth
hailed China-US economic and trade
relations have maintained a fast development
momentum since the two countries established
diplomatic ties over 20 years ago. As the biggest
developing country and developed country in the
world, respectively, the
mutual complementarity of
China and the United States and the reciprocity of
bilateral trade relations form the foundation for
the long-lasting development of China-US trade
relations.
During Chinese Vice Premier Wu
Yi's visit to the United States in early April,
entrepreneurs of the two countries signed in Los
Angeles an array of procurement contracts worth
US$4.44 billion, which involved 27 projects
ranging from software and power generation
equipment to automobiles and electronic products.
According to statistics from China's
General Administration of Customs, the United
States remained the second largest trading partner
of China in the first two months of this year,
with a bilateral trade volume of $33.29 billion,
up 25.3% year-on-year. Of the figures, the export
and import volumes of China stood at $25.48
billion and $7.8 billion, up 27.3% and 19.3%,
respectively.
China-US trade volume
reached $211.63 billion in 2005, 86 times greater
than in 1979 when diplomatic ties were first
established. From 2001 to 2005, bilateral trade
volume maintained an average annual growth rate of
27.4%.
China has become the fourth largest
export market and the third largest trade partner
of the United States, while the US is the second
largest trade partner of China. The United States
has invested in nearly 50,000 projects in China so
far, with actual investment exceeding $50 billion.
China ban on US beef exports
lifted To help reduce a massive trade gap,
Beijing has agreed to lift a ban on US beef
exports during the latest bilateral trade talks in
Washington, according to a joint statement issued
by US and Chinese officials. "China has agreed to
reopen its market to US beef subject to completion
of the technical protocol," the statement said.
The two sides promised to "work closely together"
on final details to lift the ban, which has been
in place since 2003 when the mad cow disease row
erupted in North America.
During the
annual trade talks, the Chinese government also
agreed to a range of measures to ease some serious
US concerns on the trade front. Vice Premier Wu
Yi, who is heading a 200-strong shopping
delegation visiting as many as 13 US states, told
the US team that Chinese government would, aside
from lifting the ban on US beef, consider
launching talks to join a World Trade Organization
(WTO) agreement on government procurement. Such an
agreement would require all Chinese-made computers
to install legal software, enforce the closure of
factories making fake and pirated CDs and DVDs,
eliminate barriers to trade in medical devices and
launch a dialogue on the steel trade.
The
meeting "achieved forward movement in a number of
significant areas," US Trade Representative Rob
Portman told reporters. "We welcome the progress
made today and will continue to press for
additional steps to promote greater equity,
durability and balance in the US-China trade
relationship," Portman said.
US Secretary
of Agriculture Mike Johanns said he was "very
pleased" with China's decision to resume imports
of US beef. "While we still need to finalize the
terms of this market opening, including specific
protocol and timing for trade resumption, we have
agreed to do this very quickly," Johanns said,
adding, "this is an important step in our efforts
to restore [the] beef trade based on
internationally recognized guidelines." China
imported about $100 million of US beef annually
before the ban, making it a relatively small
market. But US producers see strong growth
potential because of the country's booming economy
and Chinese consumers' fondness for beef.
"It would be unscientific and unfair to
lay all the blame on China for the US trade
deficit issue," Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi said at
a joint news conference with Gutierrez and other
top US officials. "But still, the Chinese
government attaches great importance to solving
the US deficit." Apart from trade negotiations
with US officials, Wu Yi also announced that
Chinese government had signed 107 contracts with
US companies worth a total of $16.2 billion. She
led a mission of some 200 Chinese business
leaders, including 150 chief executives. The
signed deals covered a range of sectors, including
electronics, auto parts, heavy equipment and
software.
At the conclusion of the trade
talks, China was to sign a deal with the US
aviation giant Boeing formalizing the purchase of
80 next generation 737 planes by the China
Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group. A
Boeing official put the value of the deal at
US$4.6 billion. The deal is expected to be
finalized with individual Chinese carriers in the
next few weeks.
The agreement is in
addition to 70 airplanes China agreed to buy from
the US jetmaker in November, as part of a planned
150-plane purchase. It was announced amid various
high-level meetings between Chinese and US
officials, and comes a week before Chinese
President Hu Jintao is scheduled to visit the
United States.
In December, China agreed
to buy 150 jets from rival Airbus, in a deal
valued at more than US$9 billion at list prices.
