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January 28, 2003
TO: INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE No. 11-03
RE: CONGRESSMAN MANZULLO’S LETTER TO JIANG ZEMIN REGARDING TRADE IN
SERVICES
Recently, Congressman Donald A. Manzullo, who chairs the US-China
Interparliamentary Exchange,1 sent a letter (a copy of which is attached) to President Jiang
Zemin regarding the US-China trade in services for a congressional delegation trip to China.
The delegation is expected to report to Congress on China’s implementation of its WTO
commitments. The Institute, through the Coalition of Service Industries, briefed the
Congressman’s staff on priorities for the industry with respect to China.
In the letter, while noting China’s efforts to implement its WTO accession commitments,
Congressman Manzullo describes various issues with respect to China adapting its laws to meet
WTO commitments. The Congressman’s letter discusses the continuing concern over
regulatory transparency and urges China to implement uniformly China’s WTO commitments
on transparency and licensing procedures and to renew its efforts to consult publicly with all
interested parties on draft regulations.
In addition, as the Institute has previously expressed to the Chinese authorities, the
letter discusses the issue of excessive capital requirements that serve as an effective barrier to
market access. The letter states that these requirements are inappropriate for US companies
with global operations and impair the development of China’s economy.
Finally, the letter states that under China’s WTO accession agreement, US (as well as
other foreign) pension and asset management companies will be able to participate fully in the
Chinese market in five years. Congressman Manzullo urges China to implement pension
reform to make those commitments more meaningful.
Jennifer S. Choi
Associate Counsel
Attachment (in .pdf format)
1 This Exchange is intended to foster productive relations and open channels between lawmakers in the
United States and China.