Chinese and US senior officials on Tuesday vowed to improve trade ties in a bid to create a "positive atmosphere" for the upcoming meeting between Chinese President Hu Jintao and his US counterpart George W. Bush in Washington next month.

Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi meets with visiting US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez in Beijing March 28. [Xinhua]

"The two commerce ministries should work together to ensure the success of the 17th meeting of the Sino-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade," Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi told visiting US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez.

"Only in this way, can we promote the sound and stable development of Sino-US trade and create a positive atmosphere for President Hu Jintao's visit to the United States," she said during the 100-minute meeting with Gutierrez in Zhongnanhai.

Sino-US trade hit US$212 billion last year. China has become the fourth largest export market and the third largest trade partner of the United States.

However, there is still room for the improvement of bilateral trade.

Wu introduced China's efforts in protecting intellectual property rights (IPR) and its stance on the trade imbalance, saying China will continue to strive to protect IPR and reduce the US trade deficit by increasing imports from the United States.

"There is great potential for the development of Sino-US trade, which is in line with the common interests of the two countries and the two peoples," she said.

Gutierrez said he hopes the two sides could reach more consensus during the 17th meeting of the US-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, which will be held on the eve of the meeting between President Bush and President Hu.

He appreciated China's efforts in IPR protection and hoped it would continue such efforts.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao also met with Gutierrez on Tuesday afternoon.

Gutierrez arrived in the southwestern Chinese municipality of Chongqing on Monday to start his China tour.

He held talks with his Chinese counterpart Bo Xilai in Beijing earlier on Tuesday and will meet with other Chinese officials on Wednesday.