China engages in all-round development in trade

Updated: 2011-12-07 12:11

(Xinhua)

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BEIJING - China has been engaged in constructing all-round economic and trade partnership with mutually beneficial cooperation, said the Chinese government in a white paper released Wednesday.

"China adheres to developing economic and trade partnerships based on practical cooperation and mutual benefit with all countries, no matter they are big or small, rich or poor," said the document titled "China's Foreign Trade", released by the Information Office of the State Council.

The white paper said China enjoys steady growth in its trade with developed countries including the European Union nations, the United States, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Meanwhile, the country's trade with emerging economies and developing countries is experiencing robust growth.

With the comprehensive implementation of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement in 2010, the country has canceled tariffs for 90 percent of the commodities traded between them.

In an effort to promote the institutional set-up of bilateral and regional economic and trade cooperation, China has signed agreements on bilateral trade or economic cooperation with more than 150 countries and regions.

By the end of 2010, the country had held 15 rounds of negotiations on free trade or closer economic partnership arrangements with 28 countries and regions on five continents, and signed and implemented 10 free trade agreements or closer economic partnership arrangements. Currently five free trade agreement talks are under way.

The white paper noted that China advocates the establishment of an East Asia free trade zone.

In 2010, the total volume of bilateral trade in goods between China and its trade partners in its ten free trade agreements or closer economic partnership arrangements (ASEAN, Pakistan, Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, Peru, Costa Rica, Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR and Taiwan) reached $782.6 billion, accounting for over a quarter of the country's total import and export volume, according to the document.

The white paper also noted that China has actively participated in and promoted the World Trade Organization's Doha Round talks, and strives to safeguard the authority of the multilateral trading system.

In settling disputes with its trading partners, China gives consideration to the interests of all parties, and seeks common ground while shelving differences, the white paper said.