By Paul Blustein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 3, 1999; Page A08

With time running out before a meeting Thursday between President Clinton and Premier Zhu Rongji, a top Chinese trade official is scheduled to arrive tomorrow, hoping to strike a deal that could lead to China's entry into the World Trade Organization.

The arrival of Long Yongtu, China's chief trade representative, comes as the two sides are closer than ever in Beijing's 13-year effort to join the WTO, thanks to a recent series of Chinese offers to lower barriers to foreign goods in its fast-growing market.

But Clinton administration officials are continuing to insist that China's concessions haven't gone quite far enough, and privately they warn that virtually all major U.S. industries and agricultural producers seeking to do business in China will have to be pleased with a deal for it to pass muster in Congress, where hostility toward Beijing is running high.

A number of industry groups, including the crucial high-technology sector, are enthusiastic about the results of the negotiations to date, but others, such as pharmaceutical and fertilizer companies, are unhappy about winning little -- and their dissatisfaction could doom an accord.

"We are certainly narrowing our differences," said Jay Ziegler, spokesman for U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky. "But there are a series of very difficult issues that we would consider to be deal breakers, across a variety of sectors including agriculture, telecommunications, financial services and distribution."

Although "the odds are working against" resolving those issues fully before Zhu's visit, "we are going to press as hard as we can as long as China continues to move forward," Ziegler added.

For China, membership in the WTO would confer national prestige as well as protection from unilateral trade sanctions, and it also would demonstrate Beijing's determination to modernize its part-capitalist, part-socialist economy.

To join the trade body, China must first reach agreements with its major trading partners -- the most important of which is the United States -- on reducing obstacles to foreign goods.

Beijing is eager to strike an agreement that could crown Zhu's visit with the aura of success and offset some of the antipathy that has arisen in the United States over China's recent crackdowns on dissidents and allegations of Chinese spying. But at a time when the Chinese economy has slowed significantly and unemployment is rising, the Chinese leadership is reluctant to dismantle government controls that protect industries and workers from competition.

As for the White House, a deal providing U.S. firms with greater access to Chinese markets offers obvious appeal, but administration political strategists are fearful that China's critics on Capitol Hill will blast an accord as a sellout. Congress could effectively veto a deal by refusing to end the requirement for annual legislative approval of China's continued access to the U.S. market.

Partly because the political atmosphere toward Beijing is so hostile now, and partly because so little time remains to settle the remaining disputes, one possibility is that Zhu's visit will produce a statement hailing the progress that has been achieved and expressing resolve to reach an agreement in time for a major WTO meeting in November.

Commerce Secretary William M. Daley hinted at such an outcome Wednesday during a visit to China, telling reporters: "The expectation that it could be done before the premier's visit -- the hype around that may be rather high . . . [but] at the latest, I think it's important it be done this year."

What it all comes down to, according to administration officials, is whether China's market-opening proposals are enticing enough to unite the business community, as well as the powerful agriculture lobby, behind the deal.

Among those satisfied with what they have heard about the negotiations is the Information Technology Industry, representing leading companies making computers, chips and other high-tech products, which is especially pleased that China has indicated it will phase out its tariffs entirely on most high-tech goods as part of a WTO accord.