State Councilor Wu Yi has called for efforts to further promote foreign trade next year in a bid to turn China into one of the world's trade powers.
It was important to maintain the stability and continuity of the trade policy and improve it according to the rules of the World Trade Organization and internationally accepted practice, Wu said at a national conference of foreign trade and economic work Tuesday.
Efforts should be made to cultivate new points for the growth of foreign trade and crack down on illegal trade activities such as smuggling and defrauding export rebates.
Departments of foreign trade and economic cooperation at all levels must be well prepared to meet difficulties that may emerge in next year's work due to the current international political and economic situation, Wu said.
The "Go-out" strategy was vital to China's overall development, she said. Enterprises with comparative advantages should be encouraged to set up processing or assembling plants and improve their sales network in the other parts of the world, in an effort to gradually nurture a number of Chinese enterprises engaged in multinational operations with their own brand names.
Wu urged all departments concerned to work together well to provide quality service to domestic enterprises participating in international competition.
(Xinhua News Agency December 26, 2002)
