中国搶先宣布:貿易額「世界第一」

Last month the Mainichi News on-line reported the following:

中国:貿易額　未確定「世界一」　全人代前に成果強調か

毎日新聞　2014年03月01日　21時12分（最終更新　03月01日　21時19分）

　【北京・井出晋平】中国商務省は１日、世界貿易機関（ＷＴＯ）の未確定の統計で、２０１３年に中国がモノの貿易で世界一になったと発表した。ただ、ＷＴＯは１３年の貿易統計を公式には発表していない。５日から始まる全国人民代表大会（全人代＝国会）を前に、経済成長の成果をアピールしたとみられる。

　商務省によると、中国は１３年の貿易総額（輸出と輸入の合計）が４兆１６００億ドル（約４２４兆円）。米国のデータには言及していないが、中国中央テレビによると米国の総額は約３兆９０００億ドル。商務省の姚堅（よう・けん）報道官は１日、「我が国は世界一のモノの貿易大国となった」とのコメントを発表した。

　ＷＴＯが世界貿易の年間ランキングを発表するのは毎年４月ごろ。中国は、１２年のＷＴＯの統計で米国をわずかに下回り２位だった。

　１３年は世界一が確実視されているが、「未確定の統計」と断りつつも発表前にフライングした形。「経済発展の成果を宣伝しようとの習近平政権の狙いがあるのでは」（北京の外交筋）との見方も出ている。

(試譯文)

   On the 1st (March) the China Department of Commerce announced that, based on the preliminary statistics of the World Trade Organization (WTO), China had become the world's No.1 in goods trading in 2013. However, the WTO had not announced the foreign trade statistics for 2013 officially. It was seen as an attempt to advertise the economic growth result before the start of the National People's Congress (National People's Congress = Parliament) to be held on the 5th.

   According to the Department of Commerce, the overall value of China’s external trade for 2013 (the sum total of export and import) was 4,160 billion dollars (about 424 trillion yen). According to the China Central Television, the U.S. total amount was about 3,900 billion dollars, although the American data had not been mentioned. On the 1^st Yao Jian the Press Secretary of the Department of Commerce announced his comments that "we have become the No.1 commodity trading country in the world".

   It was around April every year that the WTO announced the annual ranking of global trade. Standing at the 2nd place, China was slightly less than the U.S. in WTO’s statistics in 2012

   Even it was predicted as the world's No.1 for 2013, this announcement was in the form of jumping the gun, and otherwise it was some "unconfirmed statistics". Some views had come out (diplomatic sources of Beijing) that "may be it is the aim of the Xi Jinping Administration to advertise the result of their economic development".

The title of being the No.1 commodity trading country in the world is impressive.