China launched a service trade association on Friday under the
banner "of the enterprises and for the enterprises" to power and
regulate the country's service trade.
"The association is expected to fully play a role as bridge and
link to enhance international cooperation and to promote China's
service sector in the global arena," said Yi Xiaozhun, Ministry of
Commerce deputy, at the opening ceremony held here.
In recent years, boosting service trade has become a common
concern of governments and enterprises alike in this era of
globalization. China is no exception. "The country's service trade
faces both opportunities and challenges with its entry into the
World Trade Organization," said association President Wei Jiafu.
"The newly-born association will go all out to push forward the
service business."
After years of efforts, the country has gradually opened up to
the outside world and has formed a multi-level service sector. In
1982, the import and export volume of the service sector stood at
4.4 billion U.S. dollars, while the 2006 figure was 191.7 billion
U.S. dollars, an 43-fold increase in 24 years. In 2006, China was
eighth globally in terms of service trade exports and seventh in
imports, compared to number 28 and number 40, respectively, in
1982. The figures for 2007 were unavailable. Yi and Wei called on
service enterprises to help those in disaster-hit areas and to make
the utmost efforts to do their jobs better, such as in the delivery
of goods.?
(Xinhua News Agency February 2, 2008)
