MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

China/USA agree on trade, food security and intellectual rights

Chinese and US delegations at the 19th meeting of China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) reached this week several agreements on boosting trade ties at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library near Los Angeles, reports Xinhua the official Chinese news agency.

The signing of the agreements on food security, medical equipment trade, promotion of digital TV, agricultural cooperation and trade statistics respectively, marked the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the JCCT. At the one-day JCCT meeting co-chaired by Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Qishan, US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez and US Trade Representative Susan Schwab, the two sides also agreed to boost the cooperation between their working groups in such fields as intellectual property rights and information industry within the JCCT framework. The JCCT is a high-level government-to-government dialogue mechanism for seeking open market opportunities and resolving trade disputes between the two countries. Wang, heading the Chinese delegation, said the JCCT mechanism has served as a significant platform for Sino-U.S. consultation in such fields as trade and investment and has played an important role in solving their trade problems and extending economic and trade cooperation. Noting the two countries are mutually complementary in economy and enjoy a solid foundation for cooperation, Wang said economic and trade ties are important to each other and to the world as a whole. Both sides should take full advantage of the JCCT and resort to communication to boost mutual understanding, extend economic and trade cooperation as well as creating the favorable framework for the development of enterprises and markets of the two countries, Wang said. Secretary Gutierrez said the US attaches great importance to the JCCT mechanism and is willing to promote the US-China dialogue, cooperation and partnership within the JCCT framework to further boost bilateral economic and trade ties. Meanwhile, Schwab expressed Washington's willingness to solve the problems that have emerged in the development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation within the JCCT framework. Noting China now ranks as the second largest trade partner for United States, Schwab said the US favors a long-term and stable development in economic and trade relations with China.