China-US trade talks: down to business

China and the United States held their 25th session of the China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, known as JCCT, in Chicago on Dec 16-18.

The Chinese delegation was headed by Vice-Premier Wang Yang, while the US delegation was led by Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and US Trade Representative Michael Froman.

Both sides have spoken highly of the JCCT as an effective platform to promote bilateral trade and investment ties by tapping new opportunities and tackling outstanding issues. They reached a wide range of agreements from high-tech exports to China to China's promise to speed up approval procedures for US pharmaceutical products.

It was the first time the JCCT included a full-day private sector engagement with government officials from both sides, something Pritzker described as "reimagined" JCCT.

The session also included a roundtable discussion on bilateral investment hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce and the Paulson Institute; a luncheon to celebrate the Gateway Cities partnership hosted by World Business Chicago; a cooperative travel and tourism program hosted by the US Travel Association; as well as a discussion on developing a shared vision of economic leadership, hosted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Shenyang, Chengdu and Wuhan also sent delegations to the JCCT session.