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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, April 15, 2002

Roundup: China Committed to Asia's Common Prosperity

China's economic growth will not pose a threat to the interests of other Asian countries or regions. On the contrary, a more open China will contribute to the stability, development and prosperity of Asia and the world as a whole.


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China's economic growth will not pose a threat to the interests of other Asian countries or regions.

On the contrary, a more open China will contribute to the stability, development and prosperity of Asia and the world as a whole.

This is a consensus among Asian politicians, entrepreneurs and experts attending the Boao Forum for Asia, which wound up Saturday (April 13) at China's southernmost province Haihan.

With the deepening of economic globalization, more and more Asian countries are coming to realize that co-operation is their only chance for common success, while confrontation can only lead to common failure.

All the Asian leaders and politicians speaking at the forum stressed the importance for Asian countries of stepping up economic co-operation.

China's Premier Zhu Rongji said in his keynote speech that Asian countries must focus on economic co-operation and gradually expand their co-operation to all other fields.

China's reform and opening-up drives over the past two decades have produced one of the most dynamic economies in the world, offering the rest of the world a huge potential market.

China has also proved itself to be a co-operative and responsible major player in international society. Its refusal to devaluate its currency during the 1997 Asian financial crisis had a positive impact on economic recovery and stability in other Asian countries.

China has also actively engaged itself in promotion of economic exchanges and co-operation between Asian countries and regions, which has resulted in remarkable progress.

Chinese and ASEAN leaders agreed last November to build a Sino-ASEAN free trade zone over the next ten years, which will be the largest free trade zone in the world.

The agreement between China and ASEAN will inevitably strengthen ASEAN's economic ties with Japan and the Republic of Korea, and hence contribute to the prosperity and development of the whole East Asian region.

Financial co-operation between China and its neighbors has also produced solid results. China has signed currency swap agreements with Thailand and Japan, major moves to maintain financial stability in the region.

China's trade volume with other Asian countries totaled 288 billion U.S. dollars in 2001, accounting for 56 percent of China's total trade volume.

In the first two months of this year, China's imports from Asian countries rose by six percent, to 21.8 billion dollars, a remarkable growth in the context of the sluggish world economy.

Sun Zhenyu, China's resident representative to the World Trade Organization, estimated that China's imports from Asia will reach 80 billion dollars-worth, representing an annual growth of 7.5 percent.

Analysts agree that China's growing demand will be a blessing for Asian countries seeking economic recovery.

Participants at the first annual meeting of the Boao forum pointed out that there is a huge scope for cooperation between China and Asian countries in industrial development.

They said, China has become an important market for information products worldwide and a major source of tourists for Asian countries and the regions.

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told the forum that the Chinese and Japanese economies are very complementary, and that China's economic development will stimulate Japan to develop new industries and seek new space for economic development based on the Chinese market.

"There is huge potential for China's economic development. A richer China will certainly mean a more prosperous Asia," Thaksin Shinnawatra, Thai Prime Minister told the forum.


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