Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed on Feb. 12 joined a forum of high-level executives in New York to discuss the potential for the adoption of a U.S.-China bilateral investment treaty during the last two years of President Barack Obama’s term.
Mr. Obama has recently reiterated his commitment to the treaty, and U.S. and Chinese negotiators recently wrapped up a round of negotiations in Washington.
The U.S. China Business Council has said that the treaty would clarify the “rules of the road” for investors in both markets, reducing market-access barriers and ensuring enterprises don’t face foreign-company bias.
China has a long list of sectors that are off-limits or restricted for foreign investors, including insurance and automobiles. Negotiators are shooting to convert China to a”negative list” framework where all sectors are fair game except those expressly forbidden.
The size and content of its negative list are expected to reveal how serious China is about its own leaders’ desire to accelerate the treaty, as President Xi Jinping reiterated last July. Read more: What’s a BIT and why does it matter?
Mr. Obama visited China in November, where the two sides revealed new policies on business and tourism visas, an accord on climate change and progress on a World Trade Organization pact governing the exchange of technology products and services.
Mr. Reed led a delegation to China in 2012 with the purpose of attracting Chinese investment and helping small and mid-sized Atlanta-based companies boost sales in what has now become the second-largest export market for Georgia, totaling $3.7 billion in 2013.
The U.S.-China CEO Bilateral Investment Dialogue was hosted by Goldman Sachs, the Paulson Institute, the US-China Business Council and the China Development Research Foundation.
