Part of that is true. The potential for everything from airliners to insurance is staggering. But 20 years after China opened its borders, many foreign businesses are losing money in a thicket of bureaucracy and a quagmire of corruption and legal uncertainty. Hundreds of millions of would-be customers are dirt poor. The Chinese have to create an environment where the reality of making money matches the storied potential.
China wants to force domestic markets to compete at higher levels to hold off outside competition.
Insulated, protected industries need a good scare that free trade can provide. They've been content to produce shoddy goods for a captive market. Now, they must improve or go under. In addition to trade liberalization, Barshefsky won a measure of investment liberalization. She got that in banking and finance and telecommunications, according to early reports of the agreement.