29th July 2009

China could lower tariffs for agriculture imports: study

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Under a new global trade deal China would cut farm tariffs and open one of the least protected agriculture markets in developing countries, a new study by a Chinese expert says.

The study by a professor of international trade at China Agriculture University point out that a deal at the Doha negotiations of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) would cut Chinese farm tariffs by about a sixth. The study says that China’s tariffs which were cut after tough negotiations at the time of China’s entry into the WTO in 2001 are only a quarter of the world average.

Further as China applies duties close to the tariff ceilings unlike other developing countries a cut in the ceiling would result in real reduction in duties levied.

The study, which has been produced for the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICSTD) goes on to state that China is one of the least protected markets for agricultural products in the developing world. The ICTSD is a non-governmental organisation dedicated to the promotion of research into trade and development.

China along with other large emerging economies is under US pressure to open up its markets to American goods mainly manufactured products. However, a deal that would open up China’s food market could also be of equal interest to American businesses.

Under the new proposals, China’s farm tariffs would be cut by about a third, but in real terms this may work out to only 13 to 15 per cent as developing countries and recent members are eligible for special treatment.

Meanwhile talks for revival of the failed Doha Round are gaining momentum in Geneva. Pascal Lamy, director general of WTO said on Tuesday that the global recession had served to underline the importance of the Doha talks.

When the Doha Round was held three years ago world trade was booming and it seemed the good times would continue to roll, but global downturn has come as a hard knock with economic predictions warning of a 10 per cent fall in world trade in 2009, a unprecedented development since World War II.

According to WTO spokesman, Keith Rockwell, though trade has become on of the casualties of the downturn, it could work as an important tool to lift the world out of the crisis.

He adds that the Doha round would pare about $150 billion in taxes which can provide the right stimulus to revive the faltering global economy.
He says protectionist measures have been out of favour across the world even in the downturn as there is an awareness that such measures would hurt world trade and hamper recovery.

He adds that despite the awareness there is a lot of domestic pressure for more protectionism in every country. He sayd trade needs to be kept open and it is imperative to translate the political support for free trade into action at the negotiating table in Geneva.

According to analysts the negotiations will not be easy as the problems that put paid to the efforts at the last round continue to pose a challenge. Major disagreements over access to markets continue to bedevil the talks, they add.

While US, Europe and Japan would continue to push for access to global markets, emerging economies like Brazil and India would continue to resists such moves as long as developed countries do not end subsidising their domestic production, they say.

One response to “China could lower tariffs for agriculture imports: study”

Jonathan Hepburn 19th November 2009 at 17:36
The study by Professor Tian which is referred to in the article above can be accessed at http://ictsd.org/i/publications/50467/ in both English and Chinese.