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China Hopes to Become Full WTO Member on December 10: Report
China is expected to officially become a full fledged member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on December 10, followed by Chinese Taipei the next day, it was reported on October 12.
WTO trade ministers will speed China's accession at a ministerial meeting to be held in Doha, capital of the Gulf state of Qatar, on November 9-13, the South China Morning Post said citing unidentified sources.
Sources said because no voting procedure was required, China aimed to secure the ministers' consensus on its membership -- considered to be a virtual formality -- on the first day of the five-day meeting in Doha.
The ratified terms will then be sent back to the WTO secretariate and, under WTO regulations, be lodged there for 30 days before membership becomes official, the paper said.
Sources said China's entry to the WTO would be followed by Chinese Taipei's a day later.
Beijing reportedly wanted to join the WTO as quickly as possible because it was eager to take part in a possible new round of trade negotiations by members, likely to start at the end of the year if ministers agreed on the agenda in Doha.
In September, China and its major trading partners finally reached formal agreement on China's WTO entry after 15 years of negotiations.
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