The 18th US-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT)
will be held in Beijing on December 11, Deputy US Trade
Representative (USTR) Karan Bhatia told the press at the US embassy
on Wednesday.
And the third US-China Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) may be
held right after the JCCT on Dec. 12 and 13, he said.
Bhatia and US Acting Under Secretary of Commerce Christopher
Padilla were on a visit to China for making preparations for the
upcoming JCCT meeting and the third SED between the two
countries.
During their visit from Oct. 8 to 10, they met with China's Vice
Commerce Minister Ma Xiuhong and discussed issues on China's
industrial policies, product safety and market access for services,
medical equipment and agricultural sectors.
Bhatia said the US business community is excited and optimistic
about the opportunities that China has presented. The United States
hopes to make joint efforts with China to solve problems such as
trade protectionism, intellectual property rights protection and
product safety.
Bhatia said the United States also hoped China to play a bigger
role in international or regional trade mechanisms such as the
World Trade Organization and the APEC.
Padilla commented the meeting with Chinese commerce official as
"productive" and said he hoped China could continue its opening up
policy toward foreign enterprises through specific measures and
policies.
The JCCT, commenced in 1983, was a bilateral venue for the US
and China to address trade and market access issues.
Launched in September 2006, the biannual SED between Beijing and
Washington serves as a platform to discuss long-term, strategic and
comprehensive issues in the bilateral trade relationship.
(Xinhua News Agency October 11, 2007)
