China to Become World's 2nd Largest Trade Power: Official

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, October 25, 2002

China to Become World's 2nd Largest Trade Power: Official

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China will become the world's second largest trading power within the next few years behind the United States if it keeps up its current rapid growth, a top Chinese official was quoted as saying Wednesday.

The China Business Times cited Shan Qingjiang, director of the science and technology department in the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, as making the prediction at a trade conference this week.

Shan noted that in 1989 China ranked 15th in world trade, but by last year had become the globe's sixth largest importer and exporter.

Foreign trade in the world's most populous market had been growing at a much higher rate than the world average for the past 12 years, Shan said.

China already ranks as the number one exporter of many labor intensive products such as garments, shoes, clocks and bicycles, the report said.

According to figures compiled by Beijing last year, every person in the world owns at least one pair of shoes and 2.8 items of clothing made in China, it added.

Beginning last year, China has also witnessed rapid growth in exports of higher-end products such as the mobile phone handsets, computer monitors and air conditioners, it said.

Shan attributed the trade growth to China being a safe and cheap production base, with low-cost labor, improving technology and a stable political situation.

As well as labor-intensive industries technology and capital-intensive industries are also moving to China, especially in south and east China's Yangtze River and Pearl River deltas, he said.

China's total trade volume for 2002 is expected to hit 600 billion dollars, as against the 509.8 billion dollars for past year, according to official predictions.

Exports in the first nine months of the year rose 19.4 percent year-on-year while imports rose 17.2 percent, giving a trade surplus up 49.4 percent year-on-year to 20 billion dollars.

China's economy grew 7.9 percent in the first nine months of 2002 and is expected by officials to grow by 7.8 percent for the whole year.

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