After more than a decade of long-drawn-out and sometimes fractious negotiations, all the pieces have fallen into place for Beijing to gain its long-cherished goal of admission to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). All but one that is.
Today or tomorrow, a bitterly divided US Congress will vote on whether to top off the process, by scrapping annual reviews of China's trade status and permanently guaranteeing Chinese exports the same low-tariff access to US markets as almost every other nation. If Congress votes to pass Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR), it will fundamentally alter US relations with China and China's perception of itself as an integral part of the world economic order.
A defeat would be a disaster for President Jiang Zemin and the Premier, Mr Zhu Rongji, who can now only wait in the Zhong nan hai leadership compound for CNN breaking news from Capitol Hill. It's not often that China directs appeals to the US Congress, but yesterday the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Ms Zhang Qiyue, made the government's anxiety clear, telling reporters: "We hope the US Congress can pass PNTR neatly and unconditionally as soon as possible. They should realise PNTR is not a favour granted to China by the US side but is a matter of mutual benefit to China and the United States."
Of particular concern to Beijing is the opposition to the trade deal among a majority of Democrats over fears it will ease pressure on China over human rights. "PNTR is in the interest of the United States and has nothing to do with human rights in China," said Ms Zhang. "Passing PNTR will not only promote China-US trade but will also create positive conditions for the long-term healthy development of China-US relations."
Granting PNTR was a prerequisite for the bilateral trade agreement reached in November between Washington and Beijing, which opened the door to China's entry to the World Trade Organisation.
Separate deals with the EU on Friday and Australia on Monday all but completed China's negotiations with other WTO member-countries. Beijing's official media has warned that a defeat for the Clinton administration over the vote would not keep it out of the world body, but would only prevent US businesses from benefiting from the deal.
To allay scepticism in Congress about its sincerity in opening its markets, Chinese officials have announced unprecedented plans to globalise its stock markets. This will involve allowing foreign funds to buy shares denominated in the national currency, a liberalisation which would mean an unprecedented loosening in the country's capital account.
At $350 billion, the market capitalisation of China's stock markets is the second largest in Asia after Japan. China has also played down its belligerent approach to Taiwan of recent months and hinted at a more flexible policy towards its new President, Mr Chen Shui-bian, whose party supports independence. In a marked shift towards what they called a "pragmatic attitude", officials in Beijing said they would give President Chen a "long time" to make progress on reunification.