| Telecommunications The
timetable for market opening in mobile telephony has been accelerated by 2 years.
Foreign investment will be allowed at 25% on accession, 35% after 1 year and 49%
after 3 years. For mobile and fixed services, traffic between cities as well as
within them will be open. China
will open up its leasing market in 3 years, allowing foreign firms to rent capacity
from Chinese operators and resell it domestically and internationally (private
leased circuits & closed user groups). Insurance Effective
management control has been negotiated for foreign participants in life insurance
joint ventures, through choice of partner, and a legal guarantee of freedom from
any regulatory interference in private contracts on a 50-50 equity basis. China
will immediately give 7 new licences to European insurers, in both the life and
non-life sectors. And 2 EU firms will be permitted to establish in 2 new cities.
Scope
of insurance business will be expanded for foreign companies two years faster
than foreseen in the Sino-US Agreement. Foreign
brokers will be able to operate in China as of accession, on a 50-50 basis, and
free of any joint-venture requirement 5 years after accession. Cross border brokerage
business will also be allowed. Monopoly
state import/export restrictions China's
state monopoly on importing crude and processed oil, and NPK fertiliser, will
be gradually opened to private traders, starting on accession. The
state monopoly on exporting silk - where China accounts for 70% of world production
- will be completely removed by 2005. Tariffs China
has reduced import tariffs on over 150 leading European exports - such as machinery,
ceramics and glass, textiles, clothing, footwear and leather goods, cosmetics
and spirits. Agreed levels are generally around 8-10%. Motor
vehicles European
carmakers are well established in China, and will have greater flexibility to
choose which types of vehicles they build. Approval thresholds of provincial authorities
will be raised from $30m to $150m. China
has agreed to eliminate the joint-venture restriction for engine production, upon
accession. Distribution China
has agreed to lift the specific joint venture restriction on large department
stores (over 20,000m2) and for virtually all chain stores. Agriculture Market
access will improve for key EU products, such as rape-seed oil, dairy products,
pasta, wine and olives. An
EU-China sanitary and phytosanitary agreement will ensure China's application
of the WTO SPS Agreement, and resolve a number of bilateral issues. Horizontal
Measures China
will cease to apply a number of measures that distort trade and have macroeconomic
effects, including export performance and local content requirements, and industrial
export subsidies. China's
government procurement system will be transparent, and will not discriminate between
foreign bidders. China
will abolish preferences to domestic producers in the fields of pharmaceuticals,
chemicals, after-sales services, cigarettes and spirits. Other Improved
market access in the fields of banking, legal services, accountancy, architecture,
tourism, construction, dredging and market research. | 
