Title: Benefits of Trade with China
Headings: U.S. Department of the Treasury
U.S. Department of the Treasury
Press Center
Benefits of Trade with China

Content: Global
Increased international trade has raised real incomes, restrained prices, introduced greater product variety, spurred technological advances and innovation, and raised real living standards in the United States. The annual payoff from trade liberalization to date is over $10,000 for an average American family of four. This includes the Tokyo Round, Kennedy Round and Uruguay Round, NAFTA and other U.S. free trade agreements. The removal of remaining global barriers to trade in goods and services could generate an additional $600 billion in annual income for the United States. Most of these gains arise from liberalization of trade in services. Approximately 57 million American workers are currently employed by firms that engage in international trade. These firms tend to be more productive, have higher employment growth and pay their workers higher wages than domestically-oriented firms. Imports
International trade in goods and services exposes firms to foreign competition and reduces their ability to charge high markups above production costs. The average annual growth in U.S. import prices for the period 1990-2006 was just 1.4 percent compared to 3.1 percent for overall consumer prices. Exports
Firms engaged in the international marketplace tend to exhibit higher rates of productivity growth and pay higher wages and benefits to their workers than domestically-oriented firms.