This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Thursday, December 14th, 2006, and I'm Anastasia Glova, your host.

Scolding China's economic and trade policies is nothing new.

It's been accused of everything from stealing our jobs to taking our money and flooding our shores with substandard goods.

In an op-ed published in the National Review online this week, Daniel Eikensen, who is Associate Director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies and co-author of Anti-Dumping

exposed the devilish details of unfair trade law, argues that China deserves our praise for the progress

it has made and that it should be encouraged not blocked from continuing

to make strides in the right direction.

How is China's membership in the WTO affected its economy?

China's economy has been in growth mode since the late 70s when Deng Jau-Ping instituted reforms

for the country.

Since China's WTO membership five years ago this week, that trajectory has been even steeper.

China's economy is growing faster, double digits at an annual rate,

but it's not only China's economy that has fared well on account of its membership in the WTO.

The U.S. economy has done exceptionally well. has fared well on account of its membership in the WTO.

The U.S. economy has done exceptionally well during the past five years.

It's expanded for 19 consecutive quarters.

It's increased by 30 percent since 2001. In real terms, it's increased by

16%

16%. There's a lot of bluster from US manufacturing industries about the adverse

impact of imports from China on US manufacturing industries,

but the fact is that US manufacturing

output is actually increased by 18% since China joined the WTO.

...