Brussels - Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming answered a Xinhua reporter's questions on the second China-EU high-level economic and trade dialogue and China-EU economic and trade cooperation.
The second China-EU high-level economic and trade dialogue was successful held at EU headquarters, Brussels, from 7 to 8 May. During the dialogue, Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming, who accompanied Vice Premier Wang Qishan in a visit to Europe, was interviewed by a Xinhua reporter on the high-level dialogue and China-EU economic and trade cooperation.
Reporter: What are the positive achievements of the China-EU high-level economic and trade dialogue?
Chen Deming: The second China-EU high-level economic and trade dialogue is an important activity for China and the EU to jointly implement the consensus of the London G20 Summit and to prepare for the economic and trade issues at the 11th China-EU leaders' meeting to be held on 20 May. The main theme of the current dialogue is "promoting business opportunities during the crisis and stimulating economic recovery through trade and investment openness."
China and the EU have conducted in-depth discussions, reached a wide range of consensus, and achieved positive results in these seven subjects: trade and investment, small and medium-sized enterprises' cooperation, customs cooperation, sustainable development, trade and consumers' protection, trade and innovations, communications and transportation.
Both sides unanimously agreed that in face of the expansion and spread of the international financial crisis and the grim situation of world economic decline and recession, China and the EU should strengthen cooperation and work with the international community to promote the implementation of the consensus reached by the Washington and London G20 Summits, and take stronger measures to promote world economic recovery as soon as possible. Both sides stressed the need to resolutely oppose all kinds of protectionism, promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, and push the WTO's Doha Round of Talks for comprehensive and balanced results as early as possible. Both sides support and encourage their enterprises to strengthen cooperation, take an active part in economic stimulus programmes, and widen bilateral trade and investments.
Both sides conducted a wide range of discussions on cooperation in the fields of energy saving, environmental protection, science and technology, small and medium-sized enterprises, communications and transportation, customs, food and product safety, high-tech trade, investment, and intellectual property rights; decided the focus and goal of cooperation; and formulated the action road map and timetable.
Reporter: Since the beginning of this year, China and the EU have conducted frequent high-level mutual visits. In your opinion, what is the significance of further strengthening China-EU economic and trade cooperation?
Chen Deming: Economic and trade cooperation is an important component of China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership. In 2008, both sides overcame the impacts of unfavourable factors and reached a total of $425.6 billion in bilateral trade. The EU continued to remain China's first largest trade partner and first largest export market. Recently it has become China's first largest origin of import. Many European enterprises and famous brands are known to every household in China. China has continued to remain the second largest trade partner of the EU. China's high quality but inexpensive commodities have allowed each family in Europe to save about 300 euros each year. China's growing market serves as a huge business opportunity for European enterprises.
China-EU economic and trade cooperation has maintained a good trend of rapid development for several years. But since the second half of last year, the international financial crisis has gradually affected China-EU economic and trade relations. According the Chinese side's statistics, China-EU trade has shown a negative increase for six consecutive months since November last year. Currently, the financial crisis is still spreading and expanding. Our important task is to bring about a stable development in China-EU economic and trade cooperation. Strengthening China-EU dialogue, developing economic and trade cooperation, and jointly dealing with challenges have even more important and practical significance.
China and the EU are two important economic entities in the world and also two important forces promoting world economic growth. Maintaining good communication and cooperation between China and the EU, jointly dealing with the crisis, opposing trade and investment protectionism, maintaining openness, boosting the confidence, pushing economic and trade relations towards healthy development, and deepening comprehensive strategic partnership are a positive and important signal for global economic recovery.
Reporter: What are your specific proposals for China and the EU to continue to secure and develop economic and trade cooperation?
Chen Deming: The Chinese Government takes serious account of continuing to secure and develop China-EU economic and trade cooperation and has also adopted practical action. At the beginning of this year, Premier Wen Jiabao visited EU headquarters and four European countries. It was described by the media as a "tour of confidence." Subsequently, pursuant to Premier Wen Jiabao's instructions, I led a "Chinese trade and investment promotion delegation" to Europe, during which both sides signed economic and trade cooperation agreements worth more than $13 billion. Now the Ministry of Commerce is busy preparing for another trade and investment promotion delegation's visit to Europe to expand China-EU trade and investment cooperation.
To more effectively deal with challenges, I personally believe that China and Europe should continue to strengthen cooperation in the following aspects:
First is maintaining mutual openness and promoting trade and investment. A key point at present is to put into effect as soon as possible a series of consensus reached by China-EU high-level economic and trade dialogue and China-EU leaders' meeting. As two important economic entities in the world, China and the EU should set a good example in opposing protectionism and should continue to maintain mutual market openness, actively promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, curb the rise of protection, and push forward the process of the Doha Round of Talks.
Second is paying attention to each other's concerns and strengthening dialogue and consultations. The Chinese side understands the EU side's concern over trade imbalance and has thus taken positive measures such as sending trade and investment promotion delegations to Europe. In the meantime, with regard to lifting restrictions on high-tech exports to China and recognizing China's full market economic status - issues that the Chinese side is very concerned about - we hope the EU side will fully understand the importance and urgency of these matters and take a more active and pragmatic attitude through the existing working mechanism.
Third is using each other's advantages to expand exchanges and cooperation. Chinese and EU economies are strongly complementary to each other, each has its own strong points, and there is enormous potential for cooperation. Both sides should expand cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises and in the field of energy saving, create more business opportunities, and make greater efforts for China-EU economic invigoration and global economic recovery.
Reporter: On the question of China's full market economic status you mentioned just now, did the current dialogue touch on it?
Chen Deming: This is an important concern of China and is also one of core contents of the "trade and investment" issues in the current dialogue. Both sides also conducted an in-depth exchange of views on this. The EU side expressed acknowledgment of the Chinese side's positive progress. Both sides decided to hold the working group's fifth meeting on market economic status and put into effect the relevant consensus reached by the high-level dialogue.
China's achievements in building a socialist market economy are known to all. The EU should change the approach of judging China's market economic status simply from the technical standard and angle. It should view the diversification of the specific form of the market economy from the perspective of political decisions. China and the EU are in different development stages, have different national conditions, and the market economic contents and the form of macrocontrol should not be entirely the same.
Since the outbreak of the international financial crisis, we have noted that developed European countries and the United States have one after another introduced macroeconomic regulation and control forms different from the past. For example, the state provides guarantee for bank deposits, invests funds into banks with bad debts, and nationalize seriously hit private enterprises. This shows that different macroeconomic regulation and control forms can be introduced during different economic periods. We hope that the current international financial crisis will awaken the Western community to this fact: The market economy should be an economy of different stages, different types, and a diverse nature. The EU should not apply double standards on China, still less should it implement discriminatory measures on Chinese enterprises on this basis.Xinhua
