CHINA: U.S.Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez holds trade talks in China.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez opened a visit to China on an upbeat note on Monday (November 13), saying the two countries had a "very positive foundation" as he seeks to promote U.S. business and close a gaping trade gap. Gutierrez said his fourth trip to China as the top U.S. commerce official showed "the importance that we place on our relationship". "We are all looking forward to continuing the very positive development between China and the United States, continue to grow together, continue to create jobs, and continue to create prosperity for both nations," he said at a signing ceremony with Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai and other senior Chinese officials. But Gutierrez, leading a delegation of over two dozen U.S. executives looking to expand business, has also said that he wants Beijing to do more to balance trade relations. "While China is more open than before, much progress must still be made to provide fair access to American exporters and businesses," he said in a statement issued before his arrival in Beijing. He urged China to open more sectors to foreign investors and to do more to stamp out commercial piracy -- both constant gripes from U.S. officials and businesses that are sure to figure in Gutierrez's talks. music, movie, software and other copyright industry groups estimate they suffered some 2.4 billion US dollars in lost sales in China last year because of piracy. American manufacturers also estimate they lose billions of dollar annually because of counterfeiting and patent violations in China. Gutierrez is brought to China a "high-powered mission" including representatives from 25 U.S. firms from a broad range of industries such as electronics and pharmaceuticals. The mission will aim to help U.S. firms expand their exports to China, in a bid to reduce the United States' trade deficit with China. It will focus on assisting experienced American exporters to enter the Chinese market for the first time and helping US companies already operating in China increase their level of exports. China's trade surplus with the United States grew to 102.2 billion US dollars in the first nine months this year. This growth has strained relations between China and its major trading partner. In September, the United States' overall trade deficit narrowed but its bilateral deficit with China continued to expand, according to U.S. figures issued last week. Imports from China increased 3.3 percent to a record 27.6 billion US dollars), and the U.S. trade deficit with that country grew 4.6 percent to a record 23.0 billion US dollars. The year-to-date trade deficit with China reached $166.3 billion, keeping at a pace to easily outrun last year's record of 202 billion US dollars. The executives accompanying Gutierrez include representatives of Westinghouse Electric, which has been pressing to win tenders for China's new generation of nuclear power plants, and Eli Lilly and Co., the pharmaceutical group. Pittsburgh-based Westinghouse was recently acquired by Japan's Toshiba Corp. and was previously owned by British Nuclear Fuels. China is seeking U.S. trade expansion such as the recently announced move by Motorola Inc. to further expand its share in China, the world's second largest cellphone market, to match or beat its global average. The company's rapid growth in China has come amid a global resurgence for Motorola, which was losing ground to rivals before starting to regain form over the last year. Motorola's global market share stood at about 21 percent at the end of March, compared with 18.5 percent in China.

ITN Source | November 13, 2006

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