Chinese and French trade officials agreed to further cooperation in the fabric industry and intellectual property rights protection here on Sunday.

During his meeting with French Junior Minister of Foreign TradeFrancois Loos, Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai said he appreciated the stance of the European Union and the United Statesto implement the global free trade of fabric products in January 1,2005.

Such progress will yield mutual benefits and serve the interests of Chinese and French businesses, Bo acknowledged.

Bo said the Chinese government puts "great importance" on intellectual property rights, and "it also fits with the internal need of Chinese industries." China is willing to cooperate with France, he noted.

Loos said that the French government will push the European Union to recognize China's full market economy status at an early date, saying that France will encourage more companies to cooperate with Chinese partners.

The French government believes China will adopt effective measures to protect IPR and hopes to sponsor seminars in that aspect to stimulate cooperation in the field.

The two sides also had an exchange of views on such issues as small and medium-sized enterprises cooperation and the new round of WTO talks.

Source: Xinhua