US Trade Representative to China: Practice what you preach

THE US Trade Representative (USTR) in a report to Congress urges China to implement its planned reforms to open up its economy and ease trade tensions, Reuters report.

China is America's biggest agricultural export market worth US$25 billion in 2013 alone, but the USTR said it was "among the least transparent and predictable of the world's major markets for agricultural products".

The USTR said it wants China to reduce trade barriers, be more transparent, less discriminatory and require state-owned enterprises to compete on a level playing field with the private sector and develop a stronger legal system.

"The United States shares goals of reducing Chinese government intervention in the economy, accelerating China's opening up to foreign goods and services, reforming China's state-owned enterprises and improving transparency and the rule of law to allow fair competition in China's market," the USTR said in its report.

The USTR also said the US would not hesitate to lodge new disputes with the World Trade Organisation if bilateral talks on a range of contentious issues from agriculture to intellectual property fail.

The USTR welcomed announced Chinese reforms, which seek to increase productivity and switch focus from goods for export to domestic consumption and services.

"The United States therefore will urge China to speedily implement these promising Third Plenum Decision economic reform elements," said the report.

But China's compliance with its WTO obligations was found wanting with the USTR expressing concern at intellectual property infringements, including copyright violations and piracy which it said cost US companies billions in lost revenue.

"When bilateral discussions fail to resolve key issues, the United States will take action, including WTO dispute settlement where appropriate," said the USTR, which reported seven active WTO cases against China during 2013.