Russia unbalances China’s trade role

Russia's official entrance into the World Trade Organization (WTO) earlier this month presents many opportunities and challenges for China.

For one thing, Russia's membership in the WTO will allow it to work more closely with China - and the two nations can clearly compliment each other in many areas. Yet, Russia's abundance of energy resources as well as its prominence in several high-tech sectors may undermine China's position in the international market.

Chinese enterprises looking to expand into Russia should first highlight their strong points and identify areas where they would benefit from cooperation with Russian businesses.

At the same time, domestic enterprises should work to strengthen their technology research and development, and speed up the integration of their industrial chains in order to increase the country's overall competitiveness.