China Joins the World Trade Organization

The predecessor of the World Trade Organization (WTO) was the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), founded in 1947, of which China was a founding contracting party. In 1950 the Taiwan authorities announced their withdrawal from GATT. In 1986 China formally applied to resume its status as a GATT contracting party, beginning long negotiations on “resuming” membership. After the WTO was founded in 1995, these became negotiations on “accession.” China insisted on joining as a developing country and on a balance of rights and obligations, and held hard bilateral talks with the US, the EU and other major members, reaching a bilateral agreement with the US in 1999 and with the EU in 2000. In November 2001 the WTO’s Fourth Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar, approved China’s accession, and on 11 December 2001 China formally became the WTO’s 143rd member, ending fifteen years of negotiations. After accession China kept its commitments, sharply cut tariffs and gradually opened service sectors such as banking, insurance, telecommunications and retail. Membership integrated China more deeply into economic globalization; foreign trade and foreign investment grew rapidly, and in 2013 China became the world’s largest trader in goods. China’s growth also contributed significantly to the world economy. Joining the WTO marked a new stage in China’s opening-up and was an event of historic significance in the course of reform and opening-up.