April 2000

The U.S. Congress is in the historic position of being able to help pro-reform leaders in China move their country in a market-oriented direction. A vote to grant China permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status will bolster the position of those leaders in Beijing who are attempting to deepen and broaden the scope of China’s two-decade experiment with economic reform. Granting PNTR and China’s subsequent accession to the World Trade Organization will benefit not only the United States and the world trading community, but most directly the citizens of China, millions of whom are still mired in abject poverty. Granting PNTR to China will enable U.S. companies to take full advantage of the market access provisions that China has agreed to adopt in order to comply with WTO rules and obligations. Ultimately, Congress should ask a straightforward question: Is it in the U.S. national interest to encourage China to liberalize and reform its economy in a more market-oriented direction? The answer is a resounding yes.