According to the statistics of China Customs, the total bilateral trade between China and the United States reached $6143 billion in 1999, an increase of 12% compared with 1998, of which China's exports to the United States increased by 10.5%, reaching 4 1950. Imports from the United States increased by195 billion US dollars. According to the statistics of the US Department of Commerce, the total bilateral trade between China and the United States reached 949 1 billion US dollars in 1998, an increase of 1 1%, of which US exports to China decreased by 7.9% to13. The United States continues to be China's second largest trading partner, while China remains the fourth largest trading partner of the United States.

First, the development status quo

China's exports to the United States are mainly labor-intensive products, while the United States' exports to China are mainly technology-intensive products. According to Chinese statistics, from 65438 to 0999, the value of goods exported by China to the United States exceeded 1 billion US dollars, including mechanical and electrical products, shoes, toys, clothing, leather products, furniture, plastic products and metal products. China has also become one of the major buyers of American aircraft, mechanical and electrical equipment, paper and paper products, fertilizers, grains, chemicals and petroleum equipment.

At the same time, according to the statistics of China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, there are 2,028 American investment projects in China, from 65,438 to 0,999, with an agreed investment of US$ 6.02 billion and an actually used amount of US$ 4.22 billion. From 1980 to1the end of 999, the total number of American investment projects in China was 28,679, with the agreed US capital reaching US$ 52.6 billion, and the actually utilized US capital was US$ 25.6 billion, ranking second among countries and regions investing in China. In recent years, large American multinational companies have been optimistic about the China market. Up to now, more than 200 of the 500 large enterprises listed by American Fortune magazine have settled in China. American investment in China involves machinery, metallurgy, petroleum, electronics, communications, chemicals, textiles, light industry, agriculture and medicine. In addition, the proportion of American businessmen investing in the service industry is also increasing year by year, especially in the fields of finance, insurance, commerce, accounting and hotels. China's investment in the United States is relatively small, concentrated in the service industry, so far less than $500 million.

1999165438+1October 15. The Chinese and American governments reached an agreement on China's accession to the World Trade Organization. The U.S. government also promised to unconditionally grant China permanent normal trade relations, and submitted it to the U.S. Congress for approval. This will once and for all eliminate the endless and tangled chronic diseases in Sino-US economic and trade relations for many years and lay a stable foundation for Sino-US bilateral economic and trade relations in the new century.

Due to the differences in history, culture and social systems between China and the United States, as well as differences in ideology and values, it is inevitable that there will be some frictions, disputes and even conflicts between China and the United States from time to time in bilateral economic and trade relations. At present, the main problems in Sino-US economic and trade relations include trade imbalance, anti-dumping, economic sanctions and high-tech export control, textile trade, market access, intellectual property protection, export of reform-through-labour products and animal and plant quarantine.

Second, the existing problems

1, the trade imbalance is exaggerated.

The trade imbalance between China and the United States has always existed. 1992 was preceded by a deficit in China, followed by a deficit in the United States. Since 1990s, with the change of international economic structure and the growth of bilateral trade between China and the United States, the problem of trade imbalance has gradually emerged. In fact, the trade imbalance between China and the United States has been greatly overestimated and exaggerated.

The trade imbalance is largely due to the different statistical methods between China and the United States. According to Chinese statistics, from 65438 to 0999, China's trade surplus with the United States was $22.5 billion, while according to American statistics, its deficit with China was as high as $68.7 billion. Why is the statistical difference between the two sides so big? 1) is reflected in the statistics of entrepot trade. For example, China's products re-exported to the United States via Hongkong or other third countries or regions are not counted as China's exports to the United States, while the United States counts all of them as imports from China, and counts them as the possible added value after processing and repackaging in the re-export process. 1996 An editorial in the American Business Daily quoted Nicholas Lardy, an expert on China economics at the Brookings Institution in the United States, as saying that the US government exaggerated the statistics of the trade deficit with China by about one third.

Second, the intensification of trade imbalance is the result of changes in the economic structure in the Asia-Pacific region. With the deepening of China's reform and opening up, a large number of industrial production bases in Asia-Pacific countries and regions have moved to China, where the labor price is relatively low. The shift of production base triggered the shift of trade balance, and the United States reduced its imports to these countries and regions and increased its imports from China.

Third, the rules of origin of the United States further exaggerate the trade imbalance. L) More than 70% of China's exports to the United States are processing trade. Raw materials, spare parts and packaging items for product processing are basically provided by the United States or other countries, accounting for about 85% of the products, plus other transportation and management expenses. The processing fee received by China is very small, accounting for only 15%. However, according to the rules of origin, it is unreasonable for the United States Customs to include the total product value of such goods in the import amount. 2) Under the background of economic globalization and internationalization of production, foreign direct investment in developed countries is becoming more and more common. American multinational companies set up factories in China for production, and their products are imported to their home countries. However, according to the rules of origin, the value of these products will also be included in China's exports to the United States, which is unreasonable.

Fourthly, considering the service trade and direct investment between the two countries, according to American statistics, the trade deficit of American goods in199 was $347 10 billion, while the trade surplus of services was $75.8 billion, accounting for 22% of the deficit, which also reflected the overall situation of the trade surplus of American services in Sino-US trade. In addition, the income of American investment in China is much higher than that in China. According to the data of China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, the total sales of US-funded enterprises in China is197.5 billion yuan, or about 23.7 billion US dollars. After deducting $5.4 billion in exports, the remaining $ 183 billion is sold in the China market, which is actually equivalent to part of American exports to China, not including the profits of American companies investing in China.