The European Union’s early recognition of China’s market economy status will be conducive to bilateral relations and free trade, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told England’s Business Secretary Peter Mandelson in Beijing, pushing for more rapid recognition of the designation.  “The EU should recognize China’s market economy status as early as possible,” Premier Wen said, according to Xinhua news agency. “This will be conducive to China-EU relations, to free trade and to the recovery and growth of the world economy,” Wen said. He expressed the hope that Britain will play an active role in this process. In 2004, New Zealand became the first country to recognize China’s market economy status. Since then, more than 70 countries and organizations have recognized China as a market economy, including Russia, Australia, South Africa, Republic of Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Mandelson, who is also First Secretary of State, said Britain would like to strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination and substantive cooperation. Since the outbreak of the global economic crisis, China and Britain have witnessed leaders’ close communication and coordination, more business cooperation and joint efforts to help the international community with the crisis, Wen said. “All these moves signified the vitality of the China-Britain all-round strategic partnership,” Wen said. China and Britain are working toward a two-way trade value of USD 60 billion by 2010, a figure agreed by Wen and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown when he visited Beijing in January 2008. Despite the global economic downturn, China-Britain trade hit a record high of USD 45.6 billion in 2008, but it has been slipping with other EU countries. Mandelson led a trade delegation to Beijing where he said Britain and the EU will continue to argue for wider access to China’s markets and for direct investment in the country. But he said these arguments would not affect the overall relationship between Britain, EU and China. Mandelson, the former EU Trade Commissioner, emphasized that the EU itself had an important role to play in making its relationship with China a success. “We need to develop a clearer and consistent channel for communicating with Ch­ina, especially on trade and climate change issues,” Mandelson said.