China also further opened up its market by slashing tariff rates and non-tariff trade barriers. As for cargo imports, the average tariff rate has been decreased from 15.3 percent to 9.8 percent. Tariffs for imports of industrial products and agricultural produce, at 8.9 percent and 15.2 percent respectively, are the lowest for those products among developing countries. At the same time, restrictive non-tariff measures, including import quotas and import permits, have been abolished. In the service industry, China has opened 100 of the 160-odd sectors listed by the WTO, a level much higher than the average for developing countries, and is poised to open 11 more sub-sectors.

Learning, Adapting to and Employing WTO Rules

Of the WTO members China has encountered the largest number of trade remedy measures. China is dedicated to its stance against trade protectionism, which is fundamental to its foreign trade policy and has been articulated in all bilateral talks and negotiations under the G20 framework. In striving for a robust and healthy system of open international trade, China has been earnestly learning, adapting to, and employing WTO rules to handle trade conflicts.

Over its 10 years in the WTO China has sought to resolve conflicts with other members through the WTO dispute settlement mechanism, and has so far been involved in 19 cases, seven times as complainant and 12 as respondent. Of the cases against China one third were solved through negotiations. Of those going to the Dispute Panel and the Appellate Body, China won the disputes over steel tariffs by the U.S., the U.S. ban on Chinese poultry imports and EU anti-dumping duty on Chinese fasteners.

Though China lost the case "Measures Affecting the Protection and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights," it cannot be overlooked that the panel set up by the Dispute Settlement to scrutinize the four complaints from the U.S. rejected some of the U.S.'s key accusations, including that thresholds for criminal liability are inconsistent with China's obligations under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.

China has taken a positive attitude towards these cases. The cases it lost serve as lessons in better understanding WTO rules and accelerating domestic reforms, and the cases it won prompt the U.S. and EU to revise relevant regulations so as to ensure a fair and open multilateral trade system.

A Staunch Supporter of Free Trade and Investment

China has set up bilateral trade and economic cooperation mechanisms with 163 countries and regions worldwide, signed pacts for 10 free trade zones, and entered agreements with 129 countries on mutual investment protection and with 96 countries to avoid double taxation. These efforts facilitate international trade and investment and substantially advance the stable development of world economy.

After the Doha Round of global trade negotiations stalled, the trend of establishing free trade zones has gained momentum, and China has embraced this by incorporating free trade zones into its national strategies. China is currently establishing or negotiating for 15 free trade zones involving 28 countries and regions. This has significantly reduced disputes between China and other signatory countries, fostered a stable, transparent, free and fair environment for importers and exporters in all countries involved, and considerably galvanized bilateral trade.

Last year bilateral trade between China and its 10 major free trade partners – the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Pakistan, Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, Peru, Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan – reached a total of US $782.6 billion, accounting for 26.3 percent of China's total foreign trade in 2010.

The establishment of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Zone in 2010 proved to be a strong stimulus for foreign trade on both sides. That year ASEAN overtook Japan to become China's fourth largest export market, and in 2011 replaced Japan as China's third largest trade partner. At present, free trade has been largely realized between China and ASEAN, and the flow of various factors of production, ranging from capital, resources and technology to personnel, has become markedly more efficient, propelling the economic integration of the region to an unprecedented level.