Vice Premier Wu Yi and top US officials met in Beijing Monday to exchange views on settling their trade disputes.  

Wu and US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez and US Trade Representative Robert Portman jointly chaired the session, expected to focus on a number of hot trade issues ranging from textile disputes to intellectual property rights protection.

Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai and US Secretary of Agriculture Michael Johanns are also participating in the one-day session.

Trade between the two countries has surged rapidly over the past years. In 2004, two-way trade hit US$169.6 billion, about 69 times the figure in early 1979 when China and the US established full diplomatic relations.

The US is now China's second largest trading partner after the EU while China is the third largest trading partner of the US.

(Xinhua News Agency July 11, 2005)