Currently, economic activity in China remains controlled by a government that often bases its decisions upon rules that are not published, and when the rules are published, they are often vague and unclear to the public and overseas businesses. Appeals are made all the more difficult with no public basis for the initial decisions. The WTO requirements of transparency and justice will help rein in this ability of the Chinese state to make arbitrary decisions over economic business activities and economic life.

By requiring the clear publication of quotas and tariff rates-by making them more transparent and public-the arbitrary discretion of local officials to determine whether and at what price a local enterprise can import a foreign product that might be an essential input to goods or service will be taken away. In doing so, this agreement not only promotes economic efficiency for American exporters, it also undercuts arbitrary control and builds up the ability of local entrepreneurs to freely contract with foreign importers based not on party connections but on what makes economic sense. Economic freedom and economic efficiency gain together.

The same can be said for the free movement of goods. Currently, anybody who does business in China will refer to distribution as, at best, an enormous headache. The Chinese state controls virtually every aspect of the movement of goods, whether goods can be imported at all, the terms under which it enters, who can bring it in, and who can distribute, sell and service it. Importing and exporting, and distribution rights are privileges granted by the Chinese government to only to a few.

China's WTO commitments in these areas are quite significant. The agreement turns these scarcely allotted privileges into rights that will be widely available to both Chinese and foreign businesses. China has agreed that in 3 years, all individuals and entities in China will be able to import most products into any part of China, and that foreign firms will be able to establish, own and operate their own distribution and related services. It will certainly help promote and enhance the economic activities and people all over the world would enjoy the freedom of businesses.

Again, however, the benefits go beyond economic efficiency. Every time the multiple areas in which people must seek permission from the government for distribution or trading are reduced, the potential for a greater number of business transactions between Chinese entrepreneurs and American entrepreneurs is increased. As the weight of the state on everyday transactions becomes lighter, layers of middlemen are eliminated, and more and more Chinese salesmen, repairmen, and consumers will come into direct and daily contact with each other and with foreign firms. The agreement can help us to do business more smoothly and freely with the purpose of gaining more freedom and economic efficiency.