According to one estimate, WTO entry will cause 20 million to 25 million job losses in China - 15 million from the closure of more than half the state-owned enterprises, plus 5-10 million farmers whose grain and cotton cannot compete with imports.

Economists in China also suggest that the country’s entry to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) will do little to stop local governments protecting their firms by excluding foreign goods. China signed the 900-page membership document in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday at the WTO ministerial meeting. Among the commitments of the document is a promise to treat foreign goods as local ones.

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