China's former trade chief hits out at ‘groundless' claims country cannot join CPTPP
Beijing's former top trade negotiator has dismissed as “groundless†claims that China would not meet strict criteria to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in the long term.President Xi Jinping said two weeks ago the country was “actively considering†joining the formerly American-backed trade pact, setting off debate as to whether China would meet its terms of entry, including on state-owned enterprises (SOEs), labour rights and e-commerce…