As China approaches the end of its first year as a World Trade Organisation (WTO) member, two reports published by trade groups in the United States have assessed Beijing's record of compliance with its market-opening obligations.
The reports, released last month by the United States-China Business Council (USCBC) and the US Chamber of Commerce, provide a detailed breakdown of how American businesses have fared across various industries.
The consensus is that although China seems genuinely committed to implementing WTO reforms, especially at central government level, problem areas remain. In particular, regional and bureaucratic resistance to change has caused headaches for foreigners looking to participate in China's more sensitive markets.
Predictably, most progress has been seen in areas where reforms are easiest to implement. Beijing has amended or abolished more than 3,000 laws as part of a comprehensive review of its legal system's compliance with WTO rules. It has also moved to implement wholesale tariff reductions. As a result, average tariffs have fallen from 15.3 per cent before accession to 12 per cent today, according to the USCBC.
Other positive moves include legislation setting out a framework for foreign telecom operators to set up Chinese joint ventures (although no licences have yet been issued), and the lowering of tariffs on the import of vehicles, a sector especially vulnerable to foreign competition.
On the other side of the coin, both reports contain a laundry list of areas where Chinese compliance has apparently not been up to scratch.