China's consensus with the US on entry to the WTO is a done deal despite needing the blessing of the cabinet, Chinese trade officials and diplomats said yesterday.
The US and China said on Saturday they had reached consensus on agricultural subsidies and other issues holding up China's entry to the world trade club.
"The consensus reached cannot be taken back," said an official of the Ministry of Foreign Trade.
Chinese officials had told US negotiators the deal required the blessing of the powerful State Council, raising fears the cabinet could still derail the deal.
The State Council met yesterday and approved rules on recyling old cars, the Xinhua news agency said. State Council officials declined to say if WTO was also on the agenda.
But China's public announcement on Saturday after reaching agreement with the US showed top leaders had approved, analysts said.
"It needs the blessing of the State Council," said one diplomat, but he added: "Given that China already went public, it's basically done."
Both have kept the details under wraps, especially the compromise reached on the level of subsidies Beijing can pay farmers.
China was pushing for room to pay subsidies of 10 percent of the value of national agricultural output, the level allowed developing countries, while the US insisted on five percent, the cap for developed countries.
Agricultural industry sources say the level was likely to be seven or eight percent.
WTO members are pushing to get China into the world trade body before the possible launch of a global trade round in November, but officials said it could take three to six months to draft a complicated accession protocol needed for entry.
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