China has comprehensively and fully implemented the extensive commitments it made when it joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, according to Vice Commerce Minister Yi Xiaozhun at the WTO's first trade policy review of China on Wednesday.

  

China's average tariffs on industrial goods was lowered from pre-WTO levels of 14.8 percent to 9.1 percent by 2005, and during the same period, tariffs on agricultural products were down from 23.2 percent to 15.3 percent, Yi said.

  

He added that China had become a relatively low-tariff member within the WTO, and China had also completely phased out quantitative import restrictions in compliance with its commitments.

  

Yi was speaking to WTO members at the global trade organization's first trade policy review of China. The review is one of the basic functions of the WTO, which aims to improve the transparency of members' trade policies.

  

According to Yi, China has also opened up 10 service sectors and 100 sub-sectors as per its commitments. Sub-sectors include banking, insurance, distribution, telecoms, legal service, and accounting.

  

In addition, China's trade-related laws, regulations and rules have been extensively reviewed and brought into full compliance with its commitments on accession.

  

China has also made tremendous efforts in intellectual property rights (IPR) protection, which Yi said was a global issue, a challenge faced by even developed member states.

  

"In only 20 years, a complete legislative and enforcement system for IPR protection has been put in place in China, and public awareness of IPR protection has been dramatically raised," Yi stressed.

  

He said since its WTO entry, all of China's IPR-related laws and regulations had been amended to conform to the Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement. Further, it continues to intensify its IPR enforcement efforts.  

 

(Xinhua News Agency April 20, 2006)