Dow:China's pace after WTO accession "very impressive"

China is moving at a "very, very impressive pace" in terms of free trade, removing trade barriers and making higher standards to maintain a sound market environment after entering the WTO a decade ago, said Dow Chemical Co., the largest U.S. chemical maker. Peter Sykes, president of Dow Greater China, said at a press conference here on Wednesday that the progress China achieved after its entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) has been "very substantial and remarkable. "Over the 10 years, what I frequently see is that Western media expressed criticism or frustration about China not moving fast enough in terms of free trade or removing trade barriers, but I think those people are being unrealistic," Sykes said. It took other major economies in the world many decades to get to the point they are at now. Compared with that, China is moving at a very, very impressive pace, according to Sykes. Sykes said that China had implemented higher standards around environmental protection, safe manufacturing practices, or reducing emissions from production facilities. "China is moving very rapidly in implementing more and more standards and requirements in many areas of business, and I believe those standards will become competitive advantages for companies like Dow," he added.