Could intellectual property rights be the next flashpoint of Sino-US relations? It certainly seems to be riding higher on the US agenda with the visit to China this week of its new 'piracy tsar', Chris Israel. His mission is clear. As Mr Israel told a forum in Shenzhen on Monday: 'The ability of the United States economy to prosper is increasingly dependant on the protection of its companies' intellectual property around the world.'

Mr Israel claims that US companies are losing the equivalent of US$250 billion a year to theft of intellectual property. This, he said, translated into up to 750,000 jobs - a number impossible for any US administration to ignore, however hypothetical it may be.

To pursue his mandate, he's been given the task of co-ordinating the 'full resources of the federal government'. This involves heading the National Intellectual Property Law Enforcement Co-ordination Council, which includes the US Patent and Trademark Office, the Department of Justice, the US Trade Representative, US Customs and Border Protection, and the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce.