Fu Ziying appointed as trade representative
China appointed Fu Ziying as the country’s next international trade representative on Tuesday. A multimedia outlet run by the China Youth Daily, Haiyuncang Neican, said Fu, a veteran from the Ministry of Commerce, is now returning to his “old profession.”
The State Council, China’s cabinet, on Tuesday announced the appointment of Fu as China International Trade Representative ( ministerial level), and vice minister of commerce, according to the Xinhua News Agency on Tuesday.
Born in 1957, Fu started his career in 1974 and worked in the foreign trade sector until November 2011, when he was transferred to serve as a vice governor of East China’s Jiangsu Province. Fu holds a PhD in economics and is a senior accountant.
When the Ministry of Commerce ( MOFCOM) was established in 2003, Fu served as head of the department of planning and finance, before he was promoted to the post of assistant minister. In March 2008, Fu was promoted to the post of vice minister, with responsibility for work in finance, foreign trade development, and China’s foreign- aid programs.
An insider described Fu as not only an official, but a real finance master, and at the same time an eloquent negotiator.
Fu won his reputation as an expert negotiator from two key trade talks in 2005. In that year, a dispute took place between the textile industries in China and Europe. Fu was part of the negotiating team at the time, which took part in a closed- door duel lasting 10 hours.
In another trade talk that lasted seven rounds over five months, between the textile industries of the US and China, Fu once remarked that China would not back down on matters that have to do with its principles.
Fu also left a mark during an April 2011 press conference, when he refuted allegations that China’s aid projects in Africa were aimed at taking the continent’s resources.