国际商务英语课文电子版lesson (22)

Lesson 1 International Business（国际商务）★International business refers to transaction between parties（当事人、参与者）from different countries.Sometimes business across the borders of different customs areas （关税区）of the same country is also regarded as import and export, such as business between Hong Kong and Taiwan.International business involves more factors and thus is more complicated than domestic business. The followings(下列各项) are some major differences between the two:★ 1. The countries involved often have different legal systems（不同的法律体系）, and one or more parties will have to adjust themselves to operate in compliance with（遵照、遵从） the foreign law.2. Different countries usually use different currencies（不同的货币） and the parties will have to decide which currency to use and do everything necessary as regards（关于） conversion （兑换） etc. Uncertainties and even risks are often involved in the use of a foreign currency.3.including language, customs,traditions, religion, value, behavior etc. often constitute challenges and even traps for people engaged in international business. 4. Countries vary in natural and economic conditions and may have different policies towards foreign trade and investment, making international business more complex than domestic business.With the development ofeconomic globalization（经济全球化）,few people or companies can completely stay away from（置身于外）international business. Some knowledge in this respect（方面） is necessary both for the benefit of enterprises and personal advancement（个人进步）.International business first took the form of commodity trade（商品贸易）,.（即）exporting andimporting goods produced or manufactured in one country for consumption or resale(消费或转售) in another. This form of trade is also referred to as（被称为）visible trade（有形贸易）. Later a different kind of trade in the form of transportation, communication, banking, insurance, consulting（咨询）, information（信息业） etc. gradually became more andmore important. This type of trade is called invisible trade（无形贸易）. Today, the contribution of service industries(服务业) of the developed countries constitutes over 60% of their gross domestic products（国内生产总值）and account for(占…) an increasing proportion of world trade. ★Another important form of international business is supplying capital byresidents of one country to another, known ascan be classified into two categories. The first kind of investments, foreign direct investments（外国直接投资）or FDI for short is made for returns（回报）through controlling the enterprises or assets invested in in a host country(东道国).The host country is a foreigncountry where the investor operates, while the country where the headquarters of investor is located is called the home country（投资国）. The second kind of investment, portfolio investment（证券投资）, refers to purchases of foreign financial assets（金融资产） for a purpose other than controlling.Such financial assets may be stocks（股票）, bonds（债券）or certificate of deposit（大额存单）. Stocks are also called capital stocks or bonds（股本或股份）.★Bonds are papers issued by a government or a firm with promise to pay back the money lent or invested together with interest. The maturity period（到期时间）of a bond is at least one year, often longer, for example five, or even ten years. Certificates of deposit generally involve large amounts, say 25thousand US dollars.★Besides trade and investment, international licensing（国际许可）and franchising（特许经营） are sometimes taken as a means of entering a foreign market. In licensing, a firm leases（出租）the right to use its intellectual property（知识产权） to a firm in another country. Such intellectual property may be trademarks （商标）, brand names（品牌）,patents（专利）, copyrights （版权） or technology（技术）. Firms choose licensing is because they don’t have to make cash payment to start business, and can simply receive income in the form of royalty（知识产权/专利使用费）. Besides, they can benefit from locational advantages of foreign operation(当地经营优势) without any obligation in ownership or management. Theuse of licensing is particularly encouraged by high customs duty（关税） and non-tariff barriers（非关税壁垒） on the part of the host country. However it is not advisable to use licensing agreement in countries with weak intellectual property protection（知识产权保护）since the licensor（许可方）may have difficulty in enforcing licensing agreement（执行许可协议）.Franchising can be regarded as a special form of licensing. Under franchising, a firm, called the franchisee （特许使用方）, is allowed to operate in the name of another, called the franchiser（特许授予方） who provides the former with trademarks, brand names, logos（公司标志）, and operating techniques（经营技巧） for royalty（特许使用费）. In comparison with therelation between the licenser（许可授予方） and the licensee（许可使用方）, the franchiser has more control over and provides more support for the franchisee.★The franchiser can develop internationally and gain access to useful information about the local market with little risk and cost, and the franchisee can easily get into a businesswith established（已获认可的）products or services. Franchising is fairly popular especially in hotel and restaurant business. Other forms for participating in international business are management contract（管理合同）, contract manufacturing （生产合同）, and turnkey project（“交钥匙”工程）. Under a management contract, one company offersmanagerial or other specialized services to another within a particular period for a flat payment（固定费用） or a percentage of the relevant business volume(相关业务总价值). ★Sometimes bonuses（分红）based on profitability or sales growth are also specialized (注明) in management contracts. When a government forbids foreign ownership in certainindustries it considers to be of strategic importance but lacks the expertise for operation, management contracts may be a practical （切实可行的）choices enabling a foreign company to operate in the industry without owning the assets. By contract manufacturing, a firm can concentrate on their strongest part in the value chain（价值链）, e. g. marketing, while contractingwith foreign companies for the manufacture of their products. Such firms can reduce the amount of their resources devoted to manufacture and benefit from location advantages(当地优势) from production in host counties. ★However, loss of control over the producing process may give rise to（产生） problems in respect of quality and time of delivery （交货期）.For an international turnkey project, a firm signs a contract with a foreign purchaser and undertakes all the designing, contracting and facility equipping before handing it over to the latter upon completion.Such projects are often large and complex and take a long period to complete. Payment for a turnkey project may be made at a fixed total price or on a cost plus basis（在实际成本之外收取一定费用）. The latter way of payment shifts the burden of possible additional cost over the original budget onto the purchaser.★BOT（建设、经营、移交）is a popular variant of the turnkey project where B stands for build, O for operate and T for transfer. For a BOT project, a firm operates a facility for a period of time after buildingit up before finally transferring it to a foreign company. Making profit from operating the project for a period is the major difference between BOT and the common turnkey project. Needless to say, the contractor has to bear the financial and other risks that may occur in the period of operation.。

In assessing (evaluate) the potential of a market, people often look at its income level since it provides clues (ideas) about the purchasing power of its residents. The concepts national income and national product have roughly the same value and can be used interchangeably if our interest is in their sum total which is measured as the market value of the total output of goods and services of an economy in a given period, usually a year. The difference is only in their emphasis. The former stresses the income generated (produced) by turning out the products while the latter, the value of the productsthemselves. GNP (Gross National Product) and GDP (Gross Domestic Product) are two important concepts used to indicate a country’s total income.GNP refers to the market value of goods and services produced by the property and labor owned by the residents of an economy. This term was used by most government before the 1990s. GDP measures the market value of all goods and services produced within the geographic area of an economy. It has been preferred by most countries since the 1990s.The difference between GNP and GDP is that the former focuses on ownership of the factors of production while the latter concentrates on the place where production takes place. For example, the dividend returned by the subsidiary of Microsoft in China is included in the US GNP but not in its GDP. And the production of the same subsidiary is included in China’s GDP but not in its GNP. The difference between GNP and GDP can be ignored since it is very small in most cases. People can use whichever term that ismore easily available and they can compare a country’s GNP and another country’s GDP without worrying that the result would be terribly distorted. For instance, in 1996, the US GNP was 7,637.7 billion US Dollars and its GDP was 7,636 billion US Dollar, a difference of only 0.02%. And in 1996, China’s GNP was 8,042.28 billion yuan Renminbi and its GDP was 8,191.09 billion yuan, with a difference of 1. 8%, still insignificant though larger than the US figure.In assessing the potential of a country as a market, people often look at per capita income. Similar to the case of national income and national product, per capita income and per capita GDP do not have much difference. So let’s use per capita GDP to illustrate an economy’s income level. It is calculated by dividing its total GDP by its population. Total GDP indicates the overall size of an economy, which is important in market assessment for durable equipment or bulk goods such as grain, steel, or cement. Per capital GDP reveals (shows) the average income level of consumers, which is important when marketing consumer durables. For example, China has a large GDP of roughly USD 1. 4 trillion in 2003, being the seventh largest economy in the world. If adjusted by PPP, the figure would probably be as large as USD 6. 4 trillion, accounting for 12% of the world’s total and ranking the second only after the USA. So china is not only a newly emerging producer but also a newly emerging market. However its per capital GDP is still fairly low, just a bit over USD 1 100. Though $1 000 per capital income is believed by experts to be level at whichconsumerism begins to emerge (form), the Chinese figure is still rather low, ranking only the 111th in the world. In contrast, Singapore has a GDP of roughly a bit over $100 billion, but a per capital income as high as $32 810. Obviously China and Singapore represent two different kinds of market.Business people are also concerned about the income distribution of a market, i. e. the proportions of its rich, middle income and poor people. Producers of quality electrical appliances such as color TVs are interested in the size of a country’s middle class, while manufacturers of expensive cars such as Rolls-Royces may want to know the number of its millionaires.Countries of the world are divided by the World Bank into three categories of high-income, middle-income and low-income economies. Those enjoying annual per capital income of $9 386 and above are classified as high-income countries. This group comprises（is made up of）three types of countries. The first type includes most members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The second type are rich oil producing countries of the Middle East such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The third type consists of small-industrialized countries or regions such as Israel, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan. High-income countries often have good infrastructure, high purchasing power, advanced technology, efficient management, and favorable environment for trade and investment. They offer prime markets for expensive consumer goods and are both attractive sources and destinations of investment.Countries with annual per capita income below $9,386 but above $765 are regarded as middle-income countries. Included in this category are most East European countries and most members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, six OECD members that are not up to the level of high income countries, quite a number of Latin American countries and some comparatively developed countries in Asia, such as Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Among the African countries, South Africa and oil-producing Libya, Nigeria and Algeria belong to this category. China with a per capita income of over $1100 is a middle-income country though it was a low income country just a few years ago.Lower income countries are those that have per capita incomes of only $765 or even less. Most African countries, some Asian countries and a few Latin American countries are included in this group. These countries usually have poor infrastructure, low consumer demand and unfavorable business environment. But that does not mean they should be neglected in international business activities, because they constitute markets for lower-priced staple goods, provide cheap labor and are often rich in resources. What is more important, market is something to be developed. Once tapped, the business potential of these countries will one day become real business opportunities.The term Triad refers to the three richest regions of the world the United States, the European Union and Japan that offer the most important business opportunities. Any international enterprise must bear Triad in mind if they wantto be successful in the increasingly competitive world market.With a per capita income of about ＄30,000, the United States is the richest country in the Western Hemisphere. Though the per capita income of a few small countries like Switzerland is much higher than that of the United States, the overall size of the U.S economy of about ＄10 trillion GDP, roughly a quarter of the world total, coupled with its political stability puts the country on a unique position in the world. It accounts for about 15% of world visible and invisible trade. The U.S. dollar is the invoicing currency for about half of the international transactions and is an important component of foreign currency reserves of the world. The United States has been regarded by many people as a safe haven who tend to keep their wealth in US dollar when they lose confidence in the value of their own currency. And for many years the country remained the largest recipient (destination) of foreign investment. Over 160 of the world’s 500 largest corporations have their headquarters in the United States including 24 of the top 100. The country’s large middle class make it an attractive market for enterprises all around the globe.The second component of Triad is Western Europe that mainly refers to the European Union. With an average per capita income of over ＄20,000, all the members before its eastward expansion are classified as high income countries. Its total GDP of over 10 trillion US dollars is the largest, larger than that of the United States. Germany, France, Britain and Italy are the 4 richest, most populous and developed countries of EU. These countries are each anattractive market, and combined they constitute the largest rich market in the world. In the present intensely competing world, it is necessary and beneficial to diversify our major markets, and the importance of EU as one leg of Triad cannot be overstressed.Japan is the third component of Triad and the second largest economy of the world. It is an important supplier of high-tech products and a major importer of raw materials. While exports have greatly spur red (stimulated) Japan’s development, trade only accounts for a relatively small proportion of its GDP. Japan remained a target of criticism for engaging in unfair trade practices. The large trade surplus has enabled it to invest heavily abroad and for years it has been the largest creditor country (debtor country) of the world. With mutually complementary economy, Japan and China are major trade partners, and the two countries are close neighbours separated only by a strip of water. Sino-Japanese business relations are therefore of great importance to both countries.Some people extend the scope of Triad to include Canada and name the broadened grouping Quad.With the world’s second largest territory, Canada is rich in natural resources and its export accounts for nearly 40% of its GDP. The percentage is much higher than those of other members of t he Group of Seven and suffices (be enough) to show the importance of trade to the country. Sharing a very long common border along which most of the Canadian people live, Canada and the United States, with their respective rich market, enjoy thelargest single bilateral trade in the world.So far as China is concerned, other markets we should pay particular attention to are those around us: the Four Tigers, the ASEAN countries, Russia, India, and a bit farther away Australia. These countries or regions either have rich consumers and offer good business opportunities or are developing fast with very promising market potential. (Bric – Brazil, Russia, India, China) And their geographical proximity to China is a great advantage for us in developing business relations with them. Despite the above observations, it does not mean we can neglect other markets. Different markets offer different opportunities and it is not a good idea to tie one’s business to only a few markets. The best policy is to develop business opportunities wherever advantageous while keeping in mind the key markets.。

Lesson 22The United Nations Conferenceon Trade and Development(UNCTD)At the perennial insistence of the new states, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed宣布the sixties as the first development decade, and in 1962 it decided to convene (召开) a United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.While the discussions could have taken place within the framework of ECOSOC or GATT, the less-developed countries urgedthe creation of a new institution. They argued that the problems discussed by these two bodies （机构）mainly concerned the economic interests of the developed countries and considered GATT as a “rich men’s club”. At that time the GATT rules were based on the non-discrimination principle（MFN）. However, even after the principle of a differential treatment (GSP) had gradually come to be accepted, the less-developed countries criticisms did not cease. Although in 1963 there were 43 international organizations dealing withcommodity and other trade problems, the less-developed countries wanted a more satisfactory forum for an examination of their difficulties. Finally, the first United Nations Conference on Trade and Development was held in Geneva from 23 March to 16 June 1964.Although no specific objectives were laid down at the first conference, the general function of UNCTAD is to formulate, negotiate and implement measures to improve the development process.The specific standpoints and aims of the less-developed countriesor the majority of the participating countries may be summarized as follows:1. The share 份额of the less-developed countries in world trade is decreasing. Their terms of trade with the developed countries are constantly deteriorating（恶化）. More commodity agreements therefore need to be concluded达成, but in a new spirit, with the primary intention of helping the new countries. In the absence of（在没有…情况下）effective agreements, compulsory强制的and automatic compensatory 补偿measures shouldbe introduced 采取as soon as there is a decline in export earnings; the resources for this purpose（补偿金）should be provided by the developed countries. In GATT, only the less-developed countries should be allowed to invoke援用escape clauses.2．In order to facilitate促进the industrialization of the less-developed countries, the western nations must open up their markets to the manufactured products of the new states, even to the extent of giving them preference over the products of the industrial countries.(Give A preference over B) (prefer A to B) The provisions规定of GATT need be adjusted in order to make this possible.3．Although the aid given by the developed countries to the less-developed countries has increased, the latter consider it to be inadequate. They need to be provided with 6,000 million dollars more each year. The western nations would, indeed, also have an economic interest in bringing greater prosperity繁荣to the low-income countries（使低收入国家越来越富裕）, since their exports to theseterritorie国家 would thus be stepped up增加. Moreover, support along these lines might be some kind of compensation for the “exploitation” of the former colonies.In fact, the target at which the less-developed countries are aiming is what they describe as “a new international economic order”. As early as 1974, the UN General Assembly had drafted an action programme行动纲领for the establishment of such a “new order”（which would give more consideration to the interests of the less-developed countries）. The newinternational economic order consists mainly in a demand for more cash and trade concessions from the developed countries. The international monetary system would have to be adapted in such a way that the less-developed countries would have more Special Drawing Rights at their disposal供他们使用. Aid to less-developed countries, however, has nothing to do with the international monetary system. Furthermore, the less-developed countries have insisted on a maximum of assistance with the industrialization process, e. g. bysupplying capital, transmitting technology and granting preferential customs tariffs.The Conference was established as a permanent organ组织 of the General Assembly. It is convened every 4 years. The eleventh and the latest session of the conference was held in June, 2004 in Sao Paulo, Brazil with the theme of coordinating development strategies for the promotion of the economic development of the world especially of the developing countries.All member states of the United Nations and of its specializedagencies专业机构are members of the Conference. China became a member of the Conference in 1972.The less-developed countries of UNCTAD are known as the “Group of 77” which was create d on 15th June 1964 and at present includes more than 130 members.Conference decisions require a two-thirds majority 三分之二多数but procedural matters a simple majority only. Board decisions are taken on a simple majority简单多数.A Trade and Development Board is the permanent organ of theConference. Its 126 members are elected at each conference on a geographical basis, but with representation of the principal trading countries ensured.The Board’s main committees examine commodities, manufactures, invisibles and financing related to trade, transfer of technology and economic cooperation among less-developed countries. There is also a special committee on preferences优惠待遇. An International Trade Center has been operated, jointly with WTO.A permanent Secretariat operates in Geneva.。

Lesson 21WTO and ChinaAfter 15 long years of hard negotiations, China became a formal member of the World Trade Organization on Dec. 11, 2001. People may wonder whether it pays(值得be worthwhile) for China to devote such a lot of time and efforts for accession to加入the organization. So some knowledge about the WTO as well as the opportunities it provides and the challenges it poses to China is quite necessary.The origin of the WTO can be traced back to(date back) the early post World War II years. To guard against the threat of trade wars, major trading nations sent their representatives to Havana in 1947 to create an International Trade Organization for the promotion of international trade. That objective was, however, not realized for controversy（争议）over the extensiveness of the powers of the proposed ITO（拟成立的ITO）（这一目标由于对拟成立的ITO 的权力广泛性有争议而没能实现）, mainly for the refusal by the UnitedStates to ratify（批准approve by signing）the charter of the stillborn organization. Nevertheless,the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade(GATT) was formed as a conduit（channel渠道）for multilateral negotiations on a variety of international trade issues.Headquartered in Geneva, GATT provides a framework within which international negotiations are conducted toward creating global trade rules and a consultative mechanism for resolving differences and settling disputes under those rules. It alsoprovides technical assistance to developing countries in the form of seminars and training courses on trade policy issues.T he general aims of GATT are the improvement of standards of living, full employment, a large and steadily growing volume of real income and effective demand, the full use of the world’s resources, and the expansion of production and international trade. It is the specific task of GATT to contribute to the attainment of these objectives through arrangements directed to the substantial reduction of tariffsand other trade barriers and to the elimination of discrimination.Initially, GATT consisted of only three basic parts. In part 1 the basic obligations which are to be fulfilled by the contracting parties are laid down —the most-favored nation clause and the schedules of tariff concessions.In the years followed, the text of the General Agreement was revised, numerous amendments were reached relating mainly to the expansion of exports of less-developed countries and a part 4 was added. In the new part, thecontracting parties agree that the attainment of the general aims is particularly urgent where less-developed countries are concerned. In the interest of the less-developed countries, endeavors (efforts) must also be made to ensure the stabilization of commodity prices, better access to the markets of the developed countries, and the diminution 减少of the burdens which the developing countries assume承担in the interest of their economic development.The Generalized System ofPreferences (GSP) is meant to assist developing countries in their economic development efforts. It was established in 1968 after years of endeavors by developing countries in the UNCTAD and the GATT. Under the system, developed countries grant (give) developing countries favorable lower tariffs without granting them to developed members. And the developing countries do not have to reciprocate (exchange; give in return) such favorable treatment to the developed countries. So the GSP is an important exception tothe non-discriminate principle of MFN.A number of tariff negotiating conferences were held under the auspices of GATT during the course of the years GATT was functioning. Altogether 8 rounds of protracted yet fruitful multilateral trade negotiations were held since GATT entered into force in 1947 till the end of 1993 when the last round, the Uruguay Round finally concluded. The cumulative effect of the 8 rounds realized substantial reduction of tariffs. Tariff rate by the developed countries fell from anaverage of over 40 percent to about 3 percent in 1995.Despite GATT’s success in coordinating international trade policy, it is only an interim body without a fully defined institutional structure and with little legal enforcement power. So a big decision was made at the last Round to establish a permanent organization, the World Trade organization, to take the place of GATT.On January 1, 1995 the WTO established on the basis of the document signed before theconclusion (完成) of the Uruguay Round by the ministers of 97 countries started its operation and began its administrative work, taking over all the unfinished work left by GATT and continuing to carry out the agreements reached during the Uruguay Round. Being a new, improved replacement of GATT, the WTO is a permanent international organization to which all the members of GATT automatically become members. It is the organization’s aim to facilitate the creation of an optimal environment for international tradeand further strengthen the multilateral trading system.The WTO has three major objectives: 1. To promote free trade by encouraging members to adopt nondiscriminatory歧视, predictable trade polices; 2. To further reduce trade barriers through multilateral negotiations; 3. To establish more effective trade dispute settlement procedures.Instead of being a mere replacement of GATT, the WTO differs from its predecessor/ successor in several prominent dimensions (aspects). Firstly, as thename suggests (indicates), the GATT is only an agreement, or more exactly an interim secretariat, rather than an organizational entity in the true sense, while the WTO is a full-fledged (机构完善的) permanent organization, with the biennial ministerial meeting as its supreme decision-making body, affording it more political clout (influence) and a higher international profile (image). And its subsidiary bodies specialize in different areas. Secondly, the WTO has a much broader mandate. In addition to promoting commoditytrade which used to be the focus of GATT, the WTO is also responsible for service trade, international intellectual property protection a nd trade-related investment. Thirdly, the WTO has far greater enforcement powers. Unlike GATT，the new organization has a clearly defined dispute settlement mechanism. Its verdict is binding （有约束力的）on all its members. In this respect, the WTO is akin to （similar to）an international court of justice for world trade with the institutional strength and legal mandate (power) to implement itsdecisions.China’s efforts to gain accession to the WTO can be divided into two periods. During the GATT days, China made strenuous endeavors for the restoration (恢复) of its status as a contracting party. Though the goal was not realized, the work laid some foundation for negotiations in the second period after the WTO came into being. At the turn of the century when China was on the threshold of the WTO, the pros and cons of entry into the organization was a subject of topical interest.There were worries as well as great expectations. Now that three years have passed since China’s accession to the WTO, it is time to review China’s performance as a WTO member.As a responsible large nation, China has been doing a lot in honoring its commitments兑承诺for entering the WTO. In a short span of three years, China amended over 2300 laws and regulations of which over 800 were abolished. The overall tariff level was lowered from about 40% to 10.5%. Non-tariff measures including quotaand import license were removed step by step. The sector of service trade has been opened further and protection of intellectual property right considerably strengthened. All these efforts have produced positive results both for the other members of the WTO and for China itself who has made good use of the opportunities offered by the organization.China’s total volume of import and export doubled from 500 billion US dollars in 2001 to over 1.1 trillion US dollars in 2004, ranking the third in the world, onlyafter the United States and Germany. For three consecutive years, the country remained the largest recipient（destination）of foreign direct investment with the average yearly figure exceeding 50 billion US dollars, showing the improvement of its investment environment in line with 符合the requirement of the WTO. Contrary to the worry of some people that there would be trade deficit after entry into the WTO, China still enjoys a favorable balance of trade of 12 billion US dollars. And China’s foreign exchange reserveincreased to 550 billion US dollars, being the second largest foreign exchange reserve next only to that of Japan. The sensitive industries liable (likely) to the impact of the WTO entry such as agriculture, automobile, retail business, banking, insurance, and telecommunication all registered (获得) encouraging development.Despite all the achievements, China still faces big challenges. The first is the protectionist measures prevalent in some countries that place various barriers to trade. They intensified 加剧的anti-dumpingand countervailing measures to restrict the export expansion of other countries. Among the anti-dumping investigations, as many as 380 are directed（targeted）against China, constituting about one seventh of the total, making China the largest victim of such investigations. With the complete removal of textile quotas from January 1st 2005, antidumping investigations against China will be further intensified, and we must get mentally prepared and endeavor to reduce the negative effects.The second is the increasingcompetition faced by commercial banks and insurance enterprises from their foreign counterparts. The foreign banks already enjoy national treatment in China and they have offered over 100 items of services, tripling those by domestic banks. From Dec. 1st 2004, the number of cities where foreign banks are allowed to handle Reminbi business for enterprises increased from 13 to 18. And from 2006 Reminbi business for individuals will also be open to foreign banks. As for foreign insurance companies, all thoseentering the Chinese market are well-known enterprises with a long history and rich experience, constituting formidable competition against domestic insurance companies.The third is the challenge faced by agriculture. China committed itself for entry into the WTO not to provide any export subsidy for its agricultural produce, and ultimately lower its import tariff for farm produce to about 15%. Tariff quota will be applicable to the import of bulk produce, but the quotas are fairly large and thetariff rates within the quotas are as low as 1% to 10%. All those form great pressure on China’s agricultural production and market.。