China will not be seeking new special and differential treatment — a privilege granted to developing countries — in current and future World Trade Organization (WTO) talks, the country's official Xinhua news agency reported on Tuesday (September 23, 2025).
Xinhua cited Chinese Premier Li Qiang's remarks at a high-level meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
In making the announcement, Mr. Li noted that the world's second biggest economy was behaving as "a responsible major developing country," Xinhua reported.
China will not change its developing country status, but it will forgo asking for special and differential treatment in future negotiations at the World Trade Organization, said a senior delegate to the Chinese mission to the WTO in Geneva.
China’s decision forgo the benefits it receives from its developing country status at the WTO showed its “commitment to supporting the multilateral trading system,” Mme Li Yihong, chargee d’affaires, permanent mission of China to the WTO, told reporters on Wednesday.
