Focus: China's WTO Anniversary
A Message from the US Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab
As we approach the fifth anniversary of China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), we are given a chance to review progress made since 2001 and look ahead to the next five years and beyond. As the world's third-largest trader, China has a far-reaching impact on economies throughout the world, including the United States. Together, the United States and China have accounted for almost half of global economic growth in the past four years.
China's integration into the world economy and the international trading system has been beneficial to both countries. Since 2001, when China joined the WTO, US exports to China have grown five times faster than they have to the rest of the world, and China has gone from being the ninth-largest to the fourth-largest export market for our farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, and service providers. US consumers now have access to a wider variety of less costly goods from China, and this has helped spur US economic growth while helping to check inflation. Access to Chinese inputs has also helped make US companies and workers more competitive in the global economy.
At the same time, however, it is apparent that China has not yet fully embraced the key WTO principles of nondiscrimination and national treatment, nor has China fully institutionalized market mechanisms and made its trade regime predictable and transparent. Despite many positive reforms, China continues to use an array of industrial policy tools to promote or protect favored industries, and these tools at times appear to collide with China's WTO obligations. In addition, enforcement of intellectual property rights continues to need significant strengthening.
These sector-specific and cross-cutting challenges form a pressing agenda for the coming years. We applaud the US-China Business Council for contributing to the dialogue on these and other areas of concern. The business community provides an essential on-the-ground perspective that helps to guide our cooperative and constructive engagement with China. In our view, the enormous benefits China gains from being a WTO member carry with them the responsibility to be a constructive and responsible stakeholder in the international trading system. We look forward to working closely with the business community to build on the progress of the past five years and move toward this goal.
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