China Urges U.S. to Boost Trade and Economic Cooperation

largest trading partner for a long time, he said. Bilateral trade in goods amounted to $446.7 billion in 2011, 180 times what it was when the two nations established diplomatic relations, he said. China is the U.S.'s largest export market for agricultural products and also a key market for automobiles, airplanes and other mechanical and electrical products, he said. The countries are also cooperating in investment, he said. But China and the U.S. must remain open and inclusive, agree on plans for trade investment, broaden cooperation and boost bilateral trade, he said. They must “resolve existing differences and avoid interferences caused by politicizing economic issues,” he said. The two governments should work toward a fairer and more favorable commercial environment on both sides, he said. China is committed to streamlining approval procedures, toughening intellectual property rights protections, and guaranteeing the legitimate rights and interests of American investors, he said. “We sincerely hope that all sectors in the U.S. could treat problems occurr[ing] in the Sino-U.S. Economic and trade cooperation rationally and objectively” in order to build mutual respect and a win-win economic partnership, he said. Separately, the Chinese government said leading shipping firms lost revenue in the first half of 2012 as a result of sluggish global trade. Shipping companies will continue to struggle for the rest of the year because of China's economic slowdown and high oil prices, China COSCO Holding Co. said. China Shipping Container Lines Co. said the weak European and U.S. economies and increasing shipping capacity hurt its profits.