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Countries need to combat economic protectionism

By Liu Shinan, Jiang Wei and Du Xiaoli (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-05-15 11:56

The largest issue that both countries need to address in terms of the Sino-US bilateral trade relations is the pressure for economic protectionism, said the visiting US secretary of commerce Carlos Gutierrez in a web chat with chinadaily.com.cn in Beijing yesterday.

The visiting US secretary of commerce Carlos Gutierrez (R) talks with assistant editor-in-chief of China Daily Liu Shinan (L) on May 14, 2008 in Beijing. [chinadaily.com.cn]

"I believe that we are both facing similar issues in each of our own domestic markets. Some issues maybe different, but I think that one we have in common is we both face a pressure for economic protectionism, isolationism," said Gutierrez.

"We have to work together to convince people that the more we open, the more we trade, the more we welcome investors, then the more jobs will create and better livelihoods we will create. Because that's why we were doing this: people's lives will be better and we believe that the way to do that is openness and not isolating oneself," he added.

Gutierrez also said that the US recession is not expected to affect overall China-US relations. He said he hopes the US economy's downturn wouldn't impact the countries' relationship, because bilateral relations are "bigger than" a single economic element.

"Today, we are going through a correction, and maybe one day, the Chinese economy will go through a correction," he said. "But that should not impact our fundamental relationship; that is one of our partnerships and one of our shared commitments."

Low demand in the US market drove China's surplus against the US to drop by 12.4 percent to $16.1 billion in March - the lowest level in two years, according to US department of commerce statistics.

The US secretary met the commerce minister Chen Deming yesterday and is scheduled to meet Vice-Premier Wang Qishan today.

Gutierrez's trip to China comes on the heels of visits by US Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte and US Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt.