Short Takes

Trade

The United States initiated dispute settlement proceedings against China at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in early February, arguing that PRC subsidies aimed at encouraging exports and import substitution violate WTO rules. As the CBR went to press, the US and PRC governments had yet to resolve the dispute.

China's total trade surplus is expected to rise 6 percent to reach $189 billion this year, according to the Academy of Macroeconomic Research, a think tank under the PRC National Development and Reform Commission. Last year, China's trade surplus was more than $177 billion.

US exports to China rose 31.7 percent in 2006, according to statistics released in mid-February by the US Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. But the deficit with China jumped to $232.5 billion, up 15.4 percent, marking the largest bilateral trade imbalance to date.

Beijing

In preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing will correct all public signs that contain faulty English translations by the end of October, Beijing Vice Mayor Ji Lin said in early February. The city has already replaced 6,300 road signs, according to press reports.

Beijing received nearly 4 million foreign visitors and 132 million domestic tourists last year, who together spent more than $23 billion in the capital. Foreign tourists spent a record average of $1,033 during their stay in 2006.

Energy

China added 102 gigawatts of new power generation capacity last year. The figure exceeds the total capacity of the United Kingdom and is twice the capacity of California.

China's first strategic oil reserve, located in Ningbo, Zhejiang, began operations in late January. China also plans to build reserves in Daishan, Zhejiang; Dalian, Liaoning; and Huangdao, Shandong.

Economy

China's economy grew 10.7 percent in 2006, the fastest pace in 11 years. The PRC government hopes growth will slow in 2007, but most observers expect growth to top 9 percent.

The PRC Ministry of Commerce expects the consumer price index to rise to 2.5 percent in 2007, up from 1.5 percent in 2006, largely because of higher grain and energy prices.

A study released by the China Business Forum, the research and educational arm of the US-China Business Council, publisher of the CBR, shows that the average Chinese household income will rise by $300-$400 by 2015 if China removes all impediments to service sector growth.

Intellectual Property Rights

Pfizer Inc.'s legal battles in China over Viagra have had mixed results. In late December 2006, a Beijing court ordered two Chinese companies to halt production and sales of fake Viagra pills and to pay compensation to Pfizer for trademark infringement. In early February, however, the same court ruled that Pfizer could not claim the name Weige for the impotence drug because a Chinese drug company had already registered the trademark.

China granted 58,000 patents in 2006, more than half to foreigners, according to the PRC State Intellectual Property Office. Overseas applications accounted for roughly 57 percent of the applicant pool.

Telecom

The number of mobile phone subscribers rose by more than 67 million in 2006 to hit 461 million, according to the PRC Ministry of Information Industry. The number of mobile phone users surfing the Internet with their phones reached 17 million.