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USIS Washington File

11 April 2000

Text: Commerce Secretary William Daley at April 11 Senate Panel

(Urges China NTR at Commerce, Science and Transportation) (3600)
By seeking to join the World Trade Organization (WTO), China has
undertaken to deepen its market reforms and open its economy to the
rest of the world, according to Secretary of Commerce William Daley.
In testimony before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation
Committee April 11, Daley pointed out that China has agreed to adhere
to international trade rules and subject its actions to WTO dispute
settlement.
"It's clear that this has not been an easy choice for its leaders," he
said. "They understand that opening their borders to foreign goods,
services and investors opens the door wide to new ideas and ideals
they can not control. They have made the decision to take this risk.
We should encourage China to choose the path of reform and involvement
with the rest of the world. Bringing China into the WTO will make a
significant difference."
Calling the upcoming vote in Congress on whether to grant permanent
Normal Trade Relations status to China a "history-making foreign
policy choice," Daley noted that President Clinton had identified
getting a "yes" vote on China NTR as "his top remaining foreign policy
goal."
After all the speeches, Daley told the lawmakers, "after all the
arguments, after all the voices on both sides of the debate, what we
say is not as important as what we do.
"And on this occasion we should act to promote further reform and the
rule of law in China and to integrate China into the world economy. It
is in our economic, strategic and national security interests to do
so," Daley said.
Following is the official text of Daley's testimony, as prepared for
delivery:
(begin text)
Testimony of William M. Daley
Secretary of Commerce
Regarding PNTR for China
before the
Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
April 11, 2000
Mr. Chairman, Senator Hollings, members of the Committee, thank you
for the opportunity to testify today on the benefits to America of
China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). On Saturday,
I returned from a trip to Beijing where I co-chaired the 13th Session
of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT). The
JCCT is a government-to-government forum developed to promote
U.S.-China commercial cooperation. Last week we met to discuss China's
ongoing reform efforts and ways to enhance China's transition to a
rules-based global trading system. Obviously a lot of the discussion
centered on China's pending application to join the WTO and on our
process for deciding whether to grant Permanent Normal Trade Relations
(PNTR).
This was my third visit to China during my tenure as Secretary of
Commerce. Much has changed even in the few years that I have been
traveling there. The signs of a nascent transition to a market-based
economy are evident everywhere in increased private ownership of
businesses, more freedom for the Chinese to choose their own places of
employment, and the rerun of privately owned farms. Over twenty years
of domestic reforms have enabled China to lift more than 200 million
people out of absolute poverty. Wireless communications has put cell
phones in the hands of 40 million Chinese (only a fraction of the
potential market) and given them access to a world of ideas and
influences.
But many problems exist. High unemployment, inefficient state-ran
enterprises and corruption continue to plague the Chinese economy. As
a result, economic growth has slowed.
The Chinese leadership has recognized the need to open its market to
global competition in order to be able to build a modern, successful
economy. One of the best indicators of the commitment of the Chinese
leadership to a more open economy is its desire to take on the
challenges and obligations of WTO membership. I am here today to
discuss with you how supporting PNTR status for China can move China
toward a more open economy.
Last November, alter 13 years of negotiations, the United States and
China reached a bilateral agreement on the terms and conditions of
China's entry into the WTO. China made significant and far-reaching
market access and trade concessions that will benefit American
exporters and import sensitive industries across a broad range of
industrial goods, services and agriculture. It contains strong
enforcement mechanisms and strong protections against unfair trade.
American exporters stand to benefit immediately. China has agreed to
begin opening its markets in virtually every sector immediately upon
accession. The phase-in of further concessions will be limited to five
years in almost all cases, and in many cases only one-to-three years.
In contrast to China's historic set of commitments, we have only one
obligation, and that is to maintain the market access policies we
already apply to China by granting it Permanent Normal Trade Relations
status.
There is no doubt that this agreement is a great opportunity for
American businesses, workers and farmers. It will provide
unprecedented access to a largely untapped market of over one billion
consumers. The benefits for the U.S. are widespread, including
significant opportunities for small and medium size businesses. SMEs
are responsible for a growing share of U.S. exports to China.
Last week, 47 Governors sent a letter to Senators and Members of the
House expressing how important they believe passage of China PNTR is
to maintaining the economic growth and prosperity of families in their
states and territories. These Governors know this is a good economic
deal for America. They do not want America to be left behind.
Yet this agreement goes beyond economics. As President Clinton has
said, this represents the most significant opportunity that the United
States has had to create positive change in China since President
Nixon's visit there in the early 1970s. As a world leader we have an
obligation to foster further reform in China. Encouraging China to
join the rules-based world trading system gives it a greater stake in
the stability and prosperity of its regional neighbors and the rest of
the world. It will create a better, more stable, safer world.
Now, let me highlight some of the terms of our bilateral agreement on
China's accession to the WTO. Attached to my testimony is a more
detailed summary of the terms of the agreement. In addition, over 45
industry specific fact sheets, 50 state-specific reports, and other
detailed information are available on our Web site at
www.chinapntr.gov.
Industrial Goods
China has agreed to cut tariffs from an average of 24.6 percent to an
average of 9.4 percent overall and 7.1 percent on U.S. priority
products. China will make substantial cuts immediately with further
cuts phased in, most within five years. These cuts will benefit a wide
range of U.S. products from automobiles, to chemicals to wood
products. China will also eliminate all import quotas and non-
automatic licensing requirements for industrial goods. For example,
China will participate in the Information Technology Agreement,
eliminating tariffs and quotas on information technology products such
as semiconductors, telecommunications equipment, computers and
computer equipment and other items by 2003, in most cases, and 2005 in
a few others. Last week, nearly 200 high tech industry CEOs wrote to
Members of Congress urging support for PNTR for China and identifying
it as "an absolute priority for high-tech companies..." and the
"...most critical vote you will make in support of our high technology
industries this year."
Services
This agreement does more than lower tariffs substantially. Equally
important to U.S. industry is the agreement by China to allow U.S.
firms to engage in trade (importing and exporting) and the full range
of distribution services including wholesale, retail, repair and
transport, for their products in China. At present, China prohibits
foreign firms from distributing imported products or providing after-
sale services such as repair and maintenance, unless they have
invested in China.
China has made significant commitments to phase out most restrictions
in a broad range of service sectors in addition to distribution,
including banking, insurance and telecommunications. Also liberalized
are professional services such as accountancy and legal consulting,
business and computer-related services, motion pictures and video and
sound recording services. China will also take on the obligations
contained in the Basic Telecommunications and Financial Services
Agreements.
Agriculture
The WTO accession bilateral agreement provides increased access for
U.S. agricultural exports across a broad range of commodities and
eliminates non-tariff barriers that have kept U.S. farmers out of this
huge market. On U.S. priority agricultural products, tariffs will drop
from an average of 31 percent to 14 percent by January 2004, with even
sharper drops for beef, poultry, pork, cheese and other commodities.
China will also create new tariff rate quotas that will significantly
expand export opportunities for U.S. wheat, corn, rice and other bulk
commodities farmers.
U.S. exporters will also gain the right to sell virtually all products
freely inside China without going through state trading enterprises or
other middlemen. Right now, the average man, woman, and child in China
consumes less than a dollar's worth of American agricultural goods a
year. Looking to the future, China will account for nearly 40 percent
of the growth of U.S. agricultural exports.
In addition to the benefits of WTO accession, we will have substantial
export opportunities through the 1999 U.S.-China Agreement on
Agricultural Cooperation. This Agreement provides the terms for the
removal of scientifically unjustified restrictions on importation of
U.S. wheat and other grains, citrus, and meat. Already, we have seen
China make historic purchases of all three commodities in the last few
months as a result of this Cooperation Agreement. Complementing this
Agreement are Chinese WTO commitments to permit trading and
distribution rights.
Safeguards and Enforcement
In addition to unprecedented access to the vast Chinese market, we
negotiated additional terms to ensure that we gain the full benefits
of our agreement and that China lives up to its commitments. China has
agreed to a number of provisions that go to the core of the closed
Chinese economy and that will result in real and effective market
access. These special provisions address issues raised by the high
degree of government involvement in the Chinese economy and by
industrial policy measures, such as local content, offsets, export
performance, and forced technology transfer requirements. These
provisions were sought to address the legitimate concerns raised by
Members of Congress, Democratic and Republican alike.
The agreed provisions include special protections to guard against
import surges from China. China has agreed to a 12-year product-
specific safeguard provision which ensures that the United States can
take effective action in case of increased exports from China which
cause market disruption in the United States. This applies to all
industries, permits us to act on a lower showing of injury to domestic
industry than under existing safeguard law and allows us to act
specifically against imports from China. This safeguard provision is
in addition to existing safeguard actions authorized under Section
201.
We have also ensured that American firms and workers will have strong
protection against unfair trade practices, including dumping. China
has agreed to guarantee our right to continue using our current
methodology (treating China as a non-market economy) in antidumping
cases for fifteen years after China's accession to the WTO.
The agreement will also require China to reform a number of internal
policies which force foreign companies to locate operations in China
and give up valuable intellectual property rights as conditions of
doing business. The agreement will eliminate unfair practices such as
mandated offsets, local content and various investment performance
requirements. China will take on the obligations of the WTO Agreement
on Trade-Related Investment Measures. This will make it easier for
U.S. companies to export to China from home rather than forcing
companies to set up in China in order to sell their products there.
Forced technology transfers will also be eliminated as a condition of
investment, better enabling U.S. companies to protect their investment
in R&D. China has agreed to stop enforcement of such practices in
existing contracts immediately upon accession.
The agreement contains effective enforcement tools to ensure China
meets its obligations. For the first time, China's trade commitments
will be enforceable through a binding WTO dispute settlement,
subjecting its actions to impartial review, and ultimately sanctions
if necessary. The multilateral nature of the WTO also strengthens our
enforcement capabilities. And the significance for China is great --
its economic decisions will be subject to multilateral trade review,
which will provide us additional leverage in resolving future trade
disagreements with China.
Our bilateral agreement with China is highly specific with clear
timetables for implementation and firm end-dates for full compliance.
When copies of the agreement were handed out to Members of Congress,
some members commented that the text looked more like a spread sheet
with its defined tariff rates, dates certain and concrete obligations.
This was intentional and reflects past experience with trying to
enforce trade agreements with China. The specificity of China's
commitments in this bilateral agreement will strengthen our ability to
monitor and demand compliance.
The Administration intends to vigorously monitor and aggressively
enforce the terms of this agreement. Our commitment to do so is
reflected in the President's budget request for a $22 million increase
in new compliance and enforcement resources for Commerce, USTR, USDA
and the State Department. For example, the President's new initiative
would triple resources dedicated to China trade compliance here at the
Department of Commerce -- including administration of our unfair trade
laws. For the first time, Commerce and State will have compliance
officers on the ground in China devoted exclusively to trade law
enforcement and trade compliance.
We also have retained the right to use the full range of existing
United States trade laws, including Special 301 (intellectual property
rights protection), Section 301 (unfair trade practices), and, of
course, our antidumping laws. It also is important to emphasize that
nothing in this agreement undermines our ability to continue to block
imports of goods made with prison labor, to maintain our export
control policies, or to withdraw trade benefits, including NTR itself,
in case of a national security emergency.
A More Open China
The President has made clear that supporting China's accession into
the WTO does not mean a tacit endorsement of China's human rights
policies. We will continue to denounce China's persecution of its
citizens for their political or religious beliefs. Two weeks ago,
Secretary of State Albright personally presented a resolution
condemning China's human rights record to the United Nations' Human
Rights Commission in Geneva. We will not hesitate to use our authority
to sanction China under the International Religious Freedom Act as we
did last year. We will also continue to pursue our foreign policy
goals with China in a number of important areas such as non-
proliferation and global climate change. Our stance on a peaceful
resolution of issues between China and Taiwan will not change.
It is significant that many of those most supportive of a more open,
democratic China support its membership in the WTO. The newly elected
leader of Taiwan, Chen Shui-bian, supports normalizing trade relations
between the United States and China. Martin Lee, the leader of Hong
Kong's Democracy Party, recently said "The participation of China in
the WTO would not only have economic and political benefits, but it
would serve to bolster those in China who understand that the country
must embrace the rule of law." A longtime Chinese dissident leader,
Ren Wanding, declared in support of the China's WTO membership "Before
the sky was black, now it is light. This can be a new beginning."
By seeking to join the WTO, China has undertaken to deepen its market
reforms and open its economy to the rest of the world. It has agreed
to adhere to international trade rules and subject its actions to WTO
dispute settlement. It's clear that this has not been an easy choice
for its leaders. They understand that opening their borders to foreign
goods, services and investors opens the door wide to new ideas and
ideals they can not control. They have made the decision to take this
risk. We should encourage China to choose the path of reform and
involvement with the rest of the world. Bringing China into the WTO
will make a significant difference.
The possibility of positive change is illustrated by the great
potential of the telecommunications market in China. Some analysts
predict that China will become the world's second largest personal
computer market by the end of this year and the third largest
semiconductor market by 2001. It is already the world's fasted growing
telecommunications market. In 1999 alone, the number of Chinese
Internet users quadrupled, jumping from 2 million at the beginning of
the year to 9 million. Growth predictions put Internet users at over
20 million by the end of 2000. Not only will this technology explosion
benefit U.S. information technology industry, which is the best and
most competitive in the world, but it will also give the Chinese
people unfettered access to outside influences and ideas through
satellites and the Internet. This cannot help but promote greater
economic and political reform in China.
Of course, the trade agreement with China will not, by itself, resolve
serious human rights issues in China.
At the same time, I believe that WTO membership will bring fundamental
changes to China that will advance our goals in this area.
The Vote on PNTR
This Friday, I will head back to China with a group of your
Congressional colleagues. Secretary Glickman will follow with another
Congressional delegation during the last week in April. We will be
meeting with Chinese officials and will visit new privately owned
businesses and older state-run enterprises. We hope that this visit
will give undecided Members the opportunity to observe the changes in
China first hand and enable them to make an informed decision on PNTR.
A few months ago when the President asked me to lead the
Administration's efforts to seek Congressional approval of PNTR, I
discovered that there was a lot of misunderstanding about what the
vote on PNTR means. Let me explain. Normal trade relations, formerly
called most-favored-nation or MFN treatment, is the same trading
status we extend to the rest of the world, with very few exceptions.
The legislation would remove China from the annual NTR renewal process
under Jackson-Vanik, under which we have extended NTR to China since
1980.
PNTR is required to meet our obligation to treat all WTO members the
same. WTO members are required to grant each other "any advantage,
favor, privilege or immunity" provided to other countries "immediately
and unconditionally." The United States currently extends PNTR to all
countries with whom we share and enjoy the benefits of the WTO,
without the condition of annual review. Not surprisingly, China seeks
identical treatment upon its accession -- and WTO rules require it to
be provided.
It is worth emphasizing that this will not be a vote on whether China
will join the WTO. Once China completes its accession negotiations
with other countries, its application to join the WTO will move
forward, with or without United States participation. However,
Congress' upcoming vote on PNTR will determine whether the United
States will enjoy the economic benefits created by China's WTO
membership. A vote against PNTR will mean ceding our share of this
newly opened market to our economic competitors in Europe, Asia and
elsewhere. As President Clinton has stated, "We must understand the
consequences of saying no. If we don't sell our products to China,
someone else will step into the breach, and we will spend the next 20
years wondering why in the wide world we handed over the benefits we
negotiated to other people."
The vote on PNTR also will not affect whether the Chinese will have
access to the American market and consumers. They already do. The
United States has the most open market in the world. A vote for PNTR
will give us access to the previously closed Chinese market and level
the playing field in a dramatic way.
I appreciate the thoughtfulness and consideration Members have brought
to the debate. I am optimistic that once all the pros and cons have
been weighed the Congress will vote its support for PNTR. I was very
encouraged by last week's announcement by Speaker Hastert that the
PNTR vote in the House of Representatives will be held the week of May
22. Senate Majority Leader Lott has promised a vote in the Senate
immediately after the Memorial Day recess. These are positive
developments.
When President Nixon first went to China, more people saw the pictures
and heard his words than on any occasion in the history of the world.
During that visit he paraphrased Abraham Lincoln, saying "what we say
here would not be long remembered. What we do here can change the
world." Thirty years later, we now face another history-making foreign
policy choice, identified by President Clinton as his top remaining
foreign policy goal. After all the speeches, after all the arguments,
after all the voices on both sides of the debate, what we say is not
as important as what we do. And on this occasion we should act to
promote further reform and the rule of law in China and to integrate
China into the world economy. It is in our economic, strategic and
national security interests to do so.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, that concludes my statement. I will now be
happy to answer any questions you may have.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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