Tariffs
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China’s average tariff rate on chemical products is currently 8.8 percent.
These tariffs will be reduced to a final average rate of 6.9 percent.
Almost all staging will be finished by January 1, 2006, with some products
finishing tariff reductions in 2008.
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Tariffs have been reduced on all priority U.S. chemical exports.
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China will fully implement the required tariff reductions on more than
two-thirds of the 1,100-plus products in the Chemical Tariff Harmonization
Agreement (CTHMA) of the Uruguay Round. China will also significantly
reduce tariffs on the remaining items.
Quotas
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China has committed to the immediate elimination of virtually all quotas
on chemicals. Certain fertilizers will be subject to a tariff-rate
quota system. (See sector report on Fertilizers)
Trading Rights and Distribution
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Prior to its accession, through various means, China restricted the number
of companies that had the right to import and export goods as well as the
types of goods that these companies could import. China has agreed,
upon its accession, to eliminate any export performance, trade or foreign
exchange balancing, and prior experience requirements as criteria for obtaining
or maintaining the right to import and export. Chinese enterprises
will also have full trading rights upon accession, subject to certain minimum
registered capital requirements. Joint ventures with minority foreign ownership
will be granted full trading rights within one year after accession, and
joint ventures with majority foreign ownership will be granted full trading
rights within two years after accession. All enterprises, including
those in the chemicals sector, will be granted full trading rights within
three years after accession (except with regard to a limited number of
products, including a significant portion of imports of fertilizers, which
are reserved for state trading enterprises, as identified in Annex
2A to the Protocol).
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For enterprises and individuals that are not invested in China, the right
to import and export will be granted in a non-discriminatory and non-discretionary
way. Any requirements will be for customs and fiscal purposes only.
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Prior to its accession, China did not generally permit foreign companies
to distribute products through wholesale and retail systems in China or
to provide related distribution services, such as repair and maintenance
services. These prohibitions will be phased out over three years
for most products, including chemicals other than fertilizers. (See
sector report on Distribution
Services)
Import Procedures
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China has agreed to bring both its automatic and non-automatic import licensing
systems into conformity with the WTO Agreement on Import Licensing, ensuring
that these systems will not function as trade barriers and will comply
with the principles of national treatment and nondiscrimination.
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China will no longer condition importation or investment approvals on whether
competing domestic suppliers exist or on performance requirements of any
kind, such as export performance, local content, technology transfer, offsets,
foreign exchange balancing, or research and development.
Intellectual Property Rights
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In accordance with the WTO agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property
Rights (TRIPs), China is obligated to comply with internationally accepted
norms for protecting and enforcing the intellectual property rights of
U.S. and other foreign companies and individuals in China.
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China is in the process of modifying its intellectual property laws and
regulations, including those relating to patents, trademarks, trade secrets,
test data, and copyrights. In addition, China has committed to strengthen
the enforcement of these laws and regulations by its courts and the responsible
administrative agencies.
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China has agreed to protect undisclosed test or other data submitted to
its authorities to obtain marketing approval of pharmaceuticals and agricultural
chemical products so as to ensure that no person can rely on previously
submitted data, without the permission of the submitter, for at least six
years from the date on which China grants marketing approval to the person
submitting the data. Any second applicant for market authorization
will be granted such authorization only if he submits his own data.
The protection of such data will be available to all pharmaceutical and
agricultural chemical products that use new chemical entities whether or
not they are patent-protected.
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China has further agreed that it will only impose, apply, or enforce laws,
regulations, or other measures relating to the transfer of technology that
are consistent with with the WTO agreement on Trade-Related Investment
Measures (TRIMs) and the TRIPs agreement.
Technical Barriers to Trade
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China must bring all of its technical regulations, standards, and conformity
assessment procedures into conformity with the WTO Agreement on Technical
Barriers to Trade. The same processing periods and fees will apply
to both imported and domestic products and the choice of the assessment
body or agency will be at the discretion of the importer.
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China must apply the same technical regulations, standards, and conformity
assessment procedures to imported and domestic products by authorizing
agencies to assess both types of products during an 18-month transition
period.
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Multiple and duplicative assessment procedures will be eliminated.
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China will only test imported products for conformity with contractual
terms at the request of the parties to the contract and will not require
further conformity assessment procedures (except for random sampling) for
products certified by a body that China recognizes (e.g., UL).
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China must now base technical regulations on international standards.
These regulations must be developed in a transparent manner and applied
equally to domestic and foreign products.
Taxes
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China has agreed to ensure that its laws, regulations, and other measures
relating to internal taxes and charges levied on imports comply with WTO
rules and are applied uniformly to both foreign and domestic enterprises.
This obligation applies not only to national taxes but to provincial and
local taxes as well.
Subsidies
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China has agreed to eliminate all subsidies on industrial goods that are
prohibited under WTO rules, i.e., export and import substitution subsidies.
(See separate report on Import
Related Issues)
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