The State Council's Tariff Policy Commission announced on December 17 that import tariffs will be cut further on more than 900 products from January 1.

This will lower the overall level of import tariffs from 10.4 to 9.9 percent, and is in line with China's commitments to the WTO.

After the adjustment, the average import tariff for farm produce will drop from 15.6 to 15.3 percent; industrial goods from 9.5 to 9.0 percent.

Among the industrial rates, the tariff for textiles and clothing will be 11.4 percent; chemical products 6.9 percent; vehicles 13.3 percent; machinery 8.0 percent and electronic products 9.1 percent.

At the same time, the collection of export tariffs will be resumed on resource-related products, which analysts say is a move to meet strong domestic demand.

Specific export tariffs will start to be collected on six kinds of textile products including coats and skirts, and resumed on high-energy consumption products. A three-month interim export tariff will also be imposed on urea, a synthetic fertilizer.

The tariffs will help encourage the export of high value-added products and optimize the mix of textile exports, Chong, an official with the Ministry of Commerce said. The tariff rate "will be set by considering the conditions of textile manufacturers."

"It is also a form of self-regulation to avoid the anti-dumping measures of other countries," said an official with the General Administration of Customs of China.

(Xinhua News Agency December 22, 2004)