July 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Energy Secretary Steven Chu make their first trip to China this week since taking office.
Here's a list of trade issues that could arise during their visit, which is focused primarily on hopes of fostering cooperation with China to address climate change:
TRADE GAP AND CURRENCY
The U.S. trade gap with China hit a record $266 billion in 2008, but has narrowed this year as the U.S. recession has reduced demand for imports. The deficit with China totaled $84.6 billion in the first five months of 2009, compared with $96.3 billion in the same period last year.
After blasting China's currency practices during last year's campaign, President Barack Obama decided not to label China as a currency manipulator in his Treasury Department's first ruling on the subject in April.
The move pleased Beijing but disappointed U.S. manufacturers and labor groups, who believe that China gives its companies an unfair trade advantage by depressing the value of its currency, the renminbi, against the dollar.
China, which has some $2 trillion in U.S. Treasury holdings, has recently criticized the dominant role of the U.S. dollar as a global reserve currency and expressed concern about the huge U.S. budget deficit.
TIRES
China has loudly protested a request by the United Steelworkers union for Obama to slap emergency import curbs on tires from China, which totaled $1.8 billion last year.
Obama faces a decision by September on the issue, which is seen as a test case for how he will handle China trade.
The U.S. International Trade Commission has recommended a three-year plan imposing a 55-percent duty on imports of Chinese tires in the first year, 45 percent in the second and 35 percent in the third.
Former President George W. Bush routinely turned down requests for so-called "Section 421" curbs on imports from China. Obama promised during the campaign to look more favorably upon such requests.
STEEL
Beijing is also unhappy about a growing list of U.S. Commerce Department investigations that could lead to steep duties on its steel product exports to the United States.
Pending cases include industry requests for anti-dumping and countervailing duties on $2.6 billion in steel pipe used in oil production, $317 million in wire decking, $178 million in concrete steel wired strand and $90 million in steel grating.
Meanwhile, the United States and the European Union recently joined forces at the World Trade Organization to challenge Chinese export restrictions on raw materials used to make steel. They complain the curbs hold down costs for steel manufacturers in China and increase them abroad.
MEAT
China launched a WTO case in April over U.S. legislation that bars it from exporting processed poultry to the United States, which the House of Representative recently voted to extend for a third year.
U.S. trade groups say China has recently stopped accepting imports of U.S. chicken -- the top export market for the product, worth almost $700 million a year.
China has also banned imports of U.S. pork since the outbreak of a new strain of H1N1 flu virus and still bars imports of U.S. beef nearly six years after the first case of mad cow disease was found in the United States and other countries have taken steps to reopen their markets.
COMPUTERS
U.S. information technology companies remain concerned about China's proposal to require all computers sold in China to come installed with an Internet filter to block access to pornography. Although China recently backed off the July 1 start date, a state newspaper later quoted a Chinese official who said the plan would eventually come into force.
Washington complained of the short timetable China gave companies to comply with the request and backed U.S. industry concerns the software was technically flawed, commercially unfair and raised censorship and network security issues.