Jiang: on China's Economy and Position on Joining WTO 　　Visiting Chinese President Jiang Zemin said in London Wednesday that China has been able to maintain a stable economic growth thanks to the series of strong measures it has adopted. 　　"China's economy on the whole is doing well," Jiang said at the welcoming luncheon hosted by the China-Britain Business Council. 　　The Chinese president, who is on a five-day state visit to the United Kingdom, added that China will take further steps to increase effective demand, speed up infrastructure construction, readjust the economic structure, keep agriculture on a course of steady development, push forward technological progress of enterprises and industrial upgrading, step up the ecological and environmental development and raise the quality and efficiency of economic growth. 　　"The objective of a 7-percent economic growth projected for this year can be attained," he said. 　　"China's economy is also faced with some new situations and new problems on its way ahead," Jiang admitted. 　　The new problems he listed in the speech are as follows: 　　--- The impact of the Asian financial crisis is yet to be completely eliminated; 　　--- Deep-seated contradictions in the course of reform are in dire need of solutions; 　　--- Economic and industrial structures must be urgently readjusted; 　　--- Exports are under considerable pressure due to the sagging consumption in the domestic market; 　　--- It is an arduous task to divert and resettle the redundant employees in state-owned enterprises (SOEs). 　　"In a word, our persistent efforts to strike a right balance between reform, development and stability have made it possible to promote sustained, rapid and healthy growth of China's economy and also to maintain a sound social and political stability," Jiang said. 　　"China follows a basic economic system of simultaneous development of multiple ownerships with the state sector playing the main role," Jiang elaborated. "SOE reform is a central link of China's economic restructuring. It concerns with whether China can secure sustainable economic growth, establish a socialist market economy and continue to improve people's living standards." 　　Jiang reaffirmed China's commitment to opening up, saying it is a long-term basic state policy. 　　"To press ahead with economic growth, we in China need to bring about greater openness," Jiang said. "We will join the world as a more active player and work to improve the all-dimensional and multi-leveled opening-up pattern in wide-ranging areas." 　　China has all along taken a positive approach in its 13-year efforts to join the World Trade Organization (WTO), with a position "both consistent and clear-cut, " said the Chinese President. 　　"We are ready to make efforts for greater global economic growth, but we are firm on not sacrificing our national interests in undertaking any international economic cooperation," Jiang said at a welcoming luncheon hosted by the China-Britain Business Council, stressing that this is a basic prerequisite for China on the issue. 　　"China is a developing country and its social productive forces are yet to be developed, so it can join the WTO only on terms for a developing country," Jiang reiterated. 　　"China's accession to the WTO must be based on a balance between rights and obligations," the Chinese President added. "It will not accept excessive terms which exceed its capacity." 　　Jiang noted that economic ties between China and the world have become ever closer, adding that the world needs China for its prosperity, just as China needs the world for its development, reform and opening-up. 　　"Without the participation of China with its 1.2 billion people, the WTO cannot be a complete world organization, nor will the situation be conducive to global economic growth," Jiang pointed out. 　　So far, China has concluded bilateral negotiations on its accession to the global trade body with some developed countries, and is expected to start a fresh round of talks with the European Union. 　　Jiang called on Britain to support China's position and to play a positive role in seeking a rational solution for China's membership in the WTO. 　　The economic cooperation and trade between China and the United Kingdom have immense potentials and the two countries should continue to tap them, said Jiang. 　　"The two countries have a long history of two-way trade and fresh progress has been made in recent years thanks to bilateral efforts," said Jiang at a welcoming luncheon hosted by the China- Britain Business Council. 　　Statistics show that the bilateral trade volume has hit 6.58 billion US dollars. Between January and August this year, it rose 16.9 per cent as compared with that in the same period last year. 　　Britain is China's second largest trading partner among E.U. countries and also the biggest E.U. investor in China. 　　"The steady development of our economic cooperation and trade has brought substantial benefits to both sides," Jiang said. " China has a big market and its potential is even bigger." 　　"Its sustained economic growth will open up a broad prospect for China's economic cooperation and trade with other countries," said Jiang, who estimated that China's total imports are expected to rise to 1,500 billion US dollars in the next seven years. 　　"For a period to come, China will give priority to developing the infrastructure sector and industries such as agriculture, water conservancy, energy, transportation, telecommunications, raw materials, environmental protection, high technology and key equipment," Jiang said. 　　He pointed out that the U.K. enjoys a considerable edge in finance and science and technology, and ranks among the world's most advanced nations in such areas as energy, chemical industry, machine-building and infrastructure. In addition, many enterprises in the U.K. have long-standing economic and trade ties with China and a wealth of experience. 　　"As long as our two sides give full play to the favorable conditions, we will surely be able to build on the China-U.K. economic cooperation and trade and make even greater progress," Jiang said. 　　The Chinese president recalled that back in the early days of New China, some British companies went to China in defiance of obstacles on a famous ice-breaking visit for the purpose of developing bilateral economic cooperation and trade. 　　He called on both countries to carry forward such pioneering spirit and, from a long-term and strategic perspective, explore new channels and areas for expanded bilateral economic cooperation and trade under the new circumstances. 　　"We stand ready to work together with the British government and friends from the business community to bring economic relations and trade to a new high and promote the development of the comprehensive Sino-U.K. partnership," Jiang said in conclusion. TopNews 1999-10-21 Page1 Full Story in Chinese