China fully fulfills WTO entry commitments: Xi

BEIJING - China has fully fulfilled the commitments it made when entering the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday.

He made the remarks while addressing the opening ceremony of the fourth China International Import Expo via video.

The country's overall tariff level has dropped to 7.4 percent from 15.3 percent in 2001, lower than the 9.8 percent the country promised when entering the WTO.

Since 2001, more than 2,300 laws and regulations have been reviewed and revised by the Chinese central government, and over 190,000 by local governments, Xi said, adding that the move has injected vitality into the Chinese market and society.

The country, meanwhile, has proactively shouldered its responsibilities and brought benefits to the world. Since its accession to the WTO, China's continuous efforts in widening opening-up have injected new vitality into the country's development and world economy, Xi said.

Over the past two decades, the global ranking of China's economic aggregate has risen to the second from the sixth place. Its ranking of trade in goods has risen from the sixth to the first, while that of its trade in services has jumped from the 11th to the second.

China leads developing countries in terms of the actual use of foreign investment while its ranking of direct outbound investment has jumped to the top of the world list from the 26th place, he said.

Looking ahead, Xi said that China will implement stress tests for high-level opening-up in pilot free trade zones and at the Hainan free trade port.

The country will also release a negative list on cross-border trade in services in pilot free trade zones, Xi said.