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Mexico's Debrez to Return to China in July to Discuss WTO Deal
Mexico's Secretary for the Economy Luis Debrez will return to China in July for trade talks in an effort to hammer out details of a WTO deal, a Mexican official said Friday.
Speaking after the close of the APEC trade ministers' meeting in Shanghai, Luis de la Calle Pardo, Mexico's undersecretary for international trade negotiation, said negotiations were nearing completion.
Sticking points between China and Mexico, the only World Trade Organisation (WTO) member not to have signed a bilateral trade deal with China, centred on what "disciplines" should be used in dealing with unfair trade practices de la Calle said.
"We believe a deal is doable with China, and we have offered China flexibility on our side. If there is flexibility on both sides, we can finish it," he said.
However, he said that although Mexico would prefer to conclude a bilateral agreement with China as soon as possible and before China joined the WTO, Mexico would be willing to negotiate after China's accession to the WTO.
Shi Guangsheng, China's minister responsible for foreign trade and economic cooperation, announced during the APEC trade ministers meeting earlier this week that bilateral negotiations with Mexico would start in two weeks' time.
De la Calle, who held talks with China's chief trade negotiator Long Yongtu during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum meeting, said: "We agreed we would meet in two weeks, and further agreed that Minister Debrez will come back to China at the end of July. It will be a working visit ... to see whether we can hammer out the details of a potential agreement."
He said Mexico had significant interest in exporting agricultural products, agro-industrial products, fisheries, certain raw materials including cement, fibres and chemical products and appliances and glass products.
More generally, he said that one of the reasons for President Vicente Fox's tour of Asian countries, including China, this month, was to awaken the interest of Mexican business in the Asian market.
Currently more than 80 percent of Mexico's exports go to the United States.
Fox is due to arrive in Shanghai late Friday for meetings with city officials after visiting Beijing and Xi'an.
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