WASHINGTON, D.C., March 4, 1999 -- Business and government must work together to strengthen the current rules governing trade and to rebuild bipartisan support for further trade liberalization, Boeing Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Philip M. Condit today told Members of Congress.

Condit, who also is chairman of The Business Roundtable Task Force on International Trade and Investment, was testifying before the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Trade at a hearing on the use of trade negotiations in fighting foreign protectionism.

"Because the United States is the world's most competitive nation, it has the most to gain from the global economy and from trade liberalization," Condit said. "The U.S. government needs to continue negotiating new international trade agreements, and enforce existing agreements to ensure that U.S. companies and their workers are given the opportunity to compete fairly and to prosper in the global economy. The United States has nothing to fear from a rules-based trading system."

With 1998 exports in excess of $930 billion, Condit said the United States is the world's largest exporter. Exports are driving economic growth and job creation in the United States. They support approximately 12 million U.S. jobs that typically pay between 13 and 16 percent more than average compensation. And contrary to popular impression, many of those jobs are at small and medium-size companies.

"The 40 people I employ are all exporters whose livelihood is very much dependent on trade, " said Barry Baszile, president of Baszile Metals Service, who accompanied Condit to the hearing. Baszile Metals Service is a minority-owned firm based in Los Angeles that supplies aluminum products to Boeing and other U.S. aerospace firms, all of them major exporters.

Condit in his testimony unveiled four principles that The Business Roundtable believes should guide U.S. trade policy into the next century:

· The global economy is a reality, and U.S. trade and investment policies must reflect that reality. Current policies must be updated to ensure America's ability to navigate the complexities of the global trading system.

· U.S. leadership is critical to further progress on trade liberalization. No other nation is ready to take the lead on this important issue.

· Business must be a force for developing and implementing trade policies that benefit all parts of society and all parts of the world. It must demonstrate that everyone can win when trade expands - that it's not a zero-sum game with losers for every winner.

· A rules-based trading system is fundamental to the global economy, and enforcement of the rules is key to maintaining public support for trade liberalization.

Condit stressed two points related to this last principle.

First, the upcoming World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial in Seattle in November provides "a great opportunity to continue the process of trade liberalization and to improve the rules of the game." He stressed the urgency of launching new world trade negotiations in 1999, and said priority should be given at the Ministerial to strengthening existing agreements and to "focusing on the unfinished business from the last round."

Second, Condit said the current multilateral trading system can be greatly strengthened by including key players currently excluded from the system. "Over the next five weeks, we have a window of opportunity to accelerate the process of bringing China, one of the world's biggest traders, into the system. The April visit of Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji provides a rare chance for significant progress in this longstanding negotiation," he said.

Condit added that in advocating China's WTO membership, "we do not suggest it be at any price. China must be willing to agree to a commercially viable protocol of accession that provides meaningful market access for U.S. goods, services and agriculture." In addition, the United States must be prepared to extend permanent normal trade relations to China to ensure that U.S. firms and workers reap the benefits of a WTO accession agreement with China.

"I urge the Administration and Congress to work together to reach a consensus on moving forward this year on these critical issues," Condit concluded.

The Business Roundtable is an association of chief executive officers of leading corporations with a combined workforce of more than 10 million employees in the United States. The chief executives are committed to advocating public policies that foster vigorous economic growth and a dynamic global economy.