(12-05) 09:28 PST WASHINGTON, (AP) —

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Wednesday that Chinese product safety will be a key topic for U.S. officials at high-level economic talks with China next week.

Paulson said China’s ability to manage the safety of its goods will be an important part of Beijing’s future growth and of its trade relations with the U.S.

“American consumers need to have confidence in the safety of the products they purchase, whether produced at home or abroad,” Paulson said in a speech to the Asia Society, an education group.

Paulson and other Cabinet-level officials are going to China Dec. 12-13 for the third round of the so-called Strategic Economic Dialogue. Paulson launched the talks a year ago, but so far they have produced little results. Vice Premier Wu Yi leads the Chinese side.

The U.S. has pushed China to improve the safety of its exports given a string of high-profile recalls of various items from toys to toothpaste.

Paulson, in his speech, warned of misconceptions in the relationship “that are influencing the rise of protectionism and economic nationalism in both nations.” He said the high-level talks are helping improve communication between top officials, which was often lacking before.

The talks, he said, “have helped keep the U.S.-China economic relationship on an even keel and helped us manage difficult issues, even in times of tension. Because we have a framework for senior-level dialogue, we can Д and do Д pick up the phone and we talk. We work toward solutions.”

Besides Paulson, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab, Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner and Environmental Protection Agency chief Stephen Johnson are to attend the talks.

Paulson is expected to continue to press China to move more quickly to institute economic reforms the Bush administration believes are necessary to deal with a huge trade gap between the two nations. The U.S. deficit with China hit an all-time high of $233 billion last year and is on track to surpass that this year.

Members of Congress are pushing the administration to act more forcefully to get China to halt what critics see as unfair trade practices. They contend China is manipulating its currency to keep the value low to boost Chinese imports into the United States while making U.S. goods more expensive in China.

When England cricket fans envisaged a brave new world under Peter Moores, they probably did not expect it to include a 29-year-old one-cap wonder who goes by the nickname of “Sexual Chocolate”. But that is the case after England included the Nottinghamshire left-arm seamer Ryan Sidebottom in a 13-man squad for the second Test against West Indies on Friday.

Sidebottom, 29, played one Test under Duncan Fletcher against Pakistan in 2001, but failed to take a wicket and looked completely out of his element. He has never seemed likely to gain a second cap despite being one of the more consistent and challenging swing bowlers on the county circuit.

Now, however, he has the chance to win a second cap on the ground where he learnt his trade before moving from Yorkshire to Trent Bridge in 2004.

James Anderson is also included in a 13-man squad which, as expected, includes the fit-again Michael Vaughan but not Matthew Hoggard, who is unavailable because of a thigh strain, and Owais Shah, who makes way for the returning Vaughan after an overwrought performance in the first Test at Lord’s.

Andrew Flintoff is also in the squad but England have yet to make a decision as to his availability. “Andrew Flintoff practiced earlier today but did not bowl as a precaution,” said the chairman of selectors David Graveney. “We will need to reassess Andrew’s fitness over the next 48 hours and our plan is for him to bowl in practice on consecutive days to see if there is any further reaction to his ankle injury.”

If Flintoff is fit and England decide to bat him in his usual position at No6, they will have an extremely tricky selection decision to make, as either the captain from the previous Test (Andrew Strauss) or one of three centurions (Alastair Cook, Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell) would have to make way.

If England have a relative embarrassment of riches in their batting, the same cannot be said of their seam bowling: Liam Plunkett and Steve Harmison bowled miserably at Lord’s and England’s most reliable new-ball bowler, Hoggard, is unavailable.

“We are naturally disappointed to lose a bowler of Matthew Hoggard’s calibre for this Test but remain optimistic that he will be available for the third Test,” said Graveney. “The inclusion of James Anderson and Ryan Sidebottom in the squad is designed to provide us with different options within our pace bowling unit. With Jon Lewis and Stuart Broad unavailable through injury, we were keen to identify a bowler who could add variety to the attack.

“Ryan has been a consistent performer for Nottinghamshire over the last two seasons, is familiar with the Headingley pitch through his time with Yorkshire and deserves a further opportunity at this level.” It was one, however, that few expected him to get.

Full squad: Strauss, Cook, Vaughan (capt), Pietersen, Collingwood, Bell, Flintoff, Prior (wk), Plunkett, Harmison, Panesar, Sidebottom, Anderson.

Here’s some great news for anyone who wants to start a business: Most successful ventures don’t require a lot of money to get going. Many entrepreneurs start with small sums — often $5,000 or less — and then finance their growth out of profits.

In other words, you don’t need to have friends in the banking or venture capital business to build a successful enterprise. Consider this statistic: Roughly half of the most recent Inc. 500 — the magazine’s annual list of fast-growing small businesses — started at home. The average startup cost for companies in the 500 was a modest $25,000, and many of the entrepreneurs behind these companies spent far less than that amount to start their enormously successful enterprises.

Here are some ideas that might get you started:

– Keep your day job — for now. You might be able to start your business by working on it during weekends and evenings. That way, you can afford to experiment with different versions of your business until you find the one that seems most likely to succeed. Ideally, you can get your business on track before you quit your job.

– Work part time. Try shifting from full-time to part-time work when you start your business. This move makes the most sense in the early stages of your new venture, when you need to devote more time to finding customers and delivering products and services to them.

– Go from two incomes to one income for a time. If you live in a two-income household, one income (and benefits such as medical insurance) might cover basic living costs long enough to get your firm started. This may mean creating a new spending plan for your household, but adhering to budget guidelines for a few months is a small price to pay for long-term success in a business that is all yours.

– Turn your employer into a client. You might be able to start your business as a consultant or supplier to your old company.

– Get creative about financing. You may be the best source of financing for your business. For one thing, you won’t charge yourself interest. So begin your search for startup cash by rummaging through your personal treasury. But be wary of tapping into retirement accounts; you probably can’t afford to risk these funds. Instead, design a budget that will boost your savings rate and set that money aside in an account for your business.

If you need money right away, you can also consider borrowing money from family members and friends. But don’t borrow more than you are willing and able to repay over time in the event that your business doesn’t work out. Alternatively, some family members or friends might be willing to risk their money in exchange for an equity stake in your business.
Feasibility study

A formal document presenting an overview of your business can help you recruit potential partners, investors or lenders. It should detail the following aspects of your business:

– The product or service: What are its unique features?

– The management team: Does your team have experience in the industry?

– The market: Who are the target customers? How big is the potential market? What are the costs required to reach the target market?

– The competition: Who are your major competitors? Is your product or service superior to the competition?

– The costs: What will it cost to start and run your business?

Don’t rely on credit cards

Credit cards are a tempting but expensive source of capital for starting a business. If you resort to them for cash, your business plan should include a schedule for paying back that money within a year or so.

AllBusiness.com provides information about products and services for entrepreneurs, small businesses and professionals to start, finance and build a business. Visit http://www.allbusiness.com.