Until it does, the U.S.-China trade relationship will remain badly out of balance. Since 1985, Chinese exports to the U.S. have grown at an average of 25 percent annually. Meanwhile, our exports to China have grown only 10 percent. That adds up to a trade deficit that climbed to nearly 50 billion dollars last year. And it's showing no sign of abating.
American companies produce the most competitive goods and services the world has to offer.
And business leaders like you are working furiously to penetrate the Chinese market. But the fact is that Chinese trade and investment barriers are some of the most difficult in the world to overcome. China's import growth simply hasn't kept pace with its rapid economic expansion. We have been open and receptive to China's products. In fact, we absorb 30 percent of China's overall exports.