May 09,2000

Roth Schedules May 17 Mark-Up For PNTR Bill

WASHINGTON -- The Senate Finance Committee will meet on Wednesday, May 17 at 10:00 am in room 215 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building to mark up legislation extending permanent Normal Trading Relations to China.

Background:

China has been negotiating to join the WTO for over ten years. The WTO accession process involves series of bilateral market access negotiations with interested WTO members, as well as multilateral negotiations regarding the application of WTO rules to the applicant country. China concluded its bilateral negotiations with the United States this past November, and is expected to conclude the remaining negotiations over the next several months. Upon China's accession to the WTO, the United States is obligated to grant that country PNTR status. The grant of PNTR requires the passage of legislation by Congress; the Senate Finance Committee will mark up legislation that would grant PNTR to China on May 17.