China's leading trade body on Monday demanded early Indian action to grant 'market economy' status to the communist giant, the world's third largest trading nation and called for the opening up of the retail sector.
"India should take serious consideration on the recognition of the market economy status of China to further the business relationship between the two countries," assistant chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Wang Jinzhen said.
"I can tell you that 95 per cent of the commodities in China are regulated by the market forces without any intervention by the government," Wang said while addressing a CEO's Business Summit, organised jointly by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and CCPIT in Beijing.
"Chinese enterprises are responsible for their gains and losses themselves without financial support from the government. Normally, they cannot buy or even export lower than their cost. This is the fact in China right now," he said.
India has not yet granted 'market economy' status to China, which became a full-fledged member of the World Trade Organisation in 2001, he said while noting that nearly 50 countries, including members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have recognised China as a 'market economy.'
United States and the European Union too have not yet granted 'market economy' status to China.
According to statistics from the Chinese ministry of commerce, India has initiated over 90 anti-dumping investigations against Chinese products, two on safeguard measures and one investigation on special safeguard measures.
The value of the Chinese goods involved in anti-dumping measures from India total $720 million, a senior Chinese commerce ministry official said.
Wang, also assistant chairman of the China Chamber of International Commerce, pointed out that both China and India have to make efforts to bridge the 'knowledge gap' that acts as a barrier in stepping up bilateral cooperation between two Asian giants.
"We now suffer from 'knowledge gap'," he said.
Although the trading communities of the two nations have improved their contacts in recent times, the vast majority of people in both countries were oblivious about each other, he said.
The senior CCPIT official, who briefed the FICCI delegation about China's economic miracle of maintaining nearly ten per cent growth for two decades, also urged the Indian government to open up the retail sector to foreign businesses, including Chinese investors.
"India's retail sector needs to be opened up. There are many foreign and domestic retailers in China and the Chinese retailers are looking at investing abroad and India is one of the markets they are looking at," Wang said.
The official also expressed concern at the delay in granting business licenses to Chinese telecom majors to set up operations in India.Do you want to discuss stock tips? Do you know a hot one? Join the Stock Market Investments Discussion Group
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