China could join the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the first half of this year, the global trade body's incoming chief Supachai Panitchpakdi has said.

If China joins the WTO before June 3, a vote in the United States Congress on Normal Trade Relations (NTR) with China will be avoided, Supachai said at a British Chamber of Commerce luncheon Monday.

Last year, the US congress passed an agreement to extend Permanent Normal Trade Relations to China, dependent on China's becoming a WTO member. If China does not join the WTO before June 3, the US congress will have to vote again on extending China's NTR status.

Supachai said he hoped and was sure China could join the WTO before the launch of a new round of global trade talks, scheduled for late this year in Qatar.

Supachai, the former deputy prime minister of Thailand, said it was important that China, one of the world's largest economies, was a full member in time for the new round so it could participate in some of the most crucial negotiations.

China's accession to the WTO is a "good thing," since permanent extension of NTR by the US and a similar status with other countries will mean greater predictability for China's participation in the world trade system, Supachai said.

With its economy expected to account for 7 per cent of the world economy in three years, double the current 3.5 per cent, China will help to stabilize world economic conditions as a WTO member, he said.

China also understands the issues relevant to both developing and developed countries, having prosperous coastal cities and underdeveloped inland areas.

China's WTO entry will create new business opportunities, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. Some countries in the region could lose some foreign markets to China, but they should at the same time gain a greater market share in China itself, he said.

He said the Associations of Southeast Asian Nations members should forge closer economic ties and market integration with China as soon as possible.

Supachai said there is no need for China to open its capital account in the near future.

He expected China's trade surplus to stay intact after WTO accession, even though imports are bound to surge as the market opens up.

"Market share gains for Chinese products are also expected," he said.

(China Daily 02/27/2001)