U.S. Secretary of Commerce John Bryson and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk will co-chair the 22nd session of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan on November 20-21, in Chengdu, China. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will also take part in the discussions to address key agricultural trade concerns.
“The JCCT is a key venue for ensuring that our bilateral trade relationship moves in a positive direction to provide maximum benefits for American workers and businesses,” Kirk said. “Through this year’s JCCT, we are pressing China for concrete and measurable results on a number of significant issues including China’s policies on intellectual property rights, investment and innovation, as well as a range of sector-specific industrial policies.” “Thanks to the productivity of America's farmers, ranchers and producers, our trading partners in China recognize the United States as a reliable supplier of the highest-quality food and agricultural products," Vilsack said. "Partnerships with a growing market like China are integral to the strength of the U.S. economy in the decades ahead. Under the Obama administration, USDA has continued to expand markets for American goods abroad, worked aggressively to break down barriers to trade, and assisted U.S. businesses with the resources needed to reach consumers around the world.” Last year’s JCCT was held in Washington, D.C., and during the meetings, China agreed, among other issues, to improve intellectual property rights enforcement, to revise its indigenous innovation policies and to accelerate its accession to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.
China was the largest supplier of U.S. goods imports in 2010 and was the third-largest market for U.S. exports in 2010 (after Canada and Mexico). U.S. goods exports to China were $92 billion in 2010, up 468 percent since 2000. Trade in services with China (exports and imports) totaled $31 billion in 2010; services exports were $21 billion and services imports were $10 billion.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
