China and US Reaffirm Commitment to Complete China's WTO AccessionChina and the United States reaffirmed on Thursday their commitment to complete China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).At the 13th session of the China - US Joint Economic Committee (JEC), the two sides agreed that China's accession would strengthen bilateral trade relations and provide further impetus to structural reforms in China. According to a joint statement issued after the session, senior officials discussed developments in macroeconomic policies and economic structural reforms, and initiatives to promote growth in less developed areas in each economy. The session was co-chaired by Chinese Finance Minister Xiang Huaicheng and US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers. On macroeconomic policies and structural reform, both sides agreed that the global economic situation is positive. However, they noted the risks posed by oil price volatility to world economic recovery and to developing economies easily affected by oil market conditions, as well as the need to stabilize prices at sustainable levels. The two sides noted that, in the United States, growth remains strong, unemployment low and inflation contained. To sustain the growth rate,fiscal and monetary policies should continue to be prudent and national savings rates should increase. The statement said that China's economy had continued to maintain strong growth this year. "Deflationary pressure has eased. Reform of state-owned enterprises, the social security system and the financial sector, including strengthening banking supervision, is ongoing," the statement said. "As a result, economic restructuring necessary to put China's economy on a sustainable, market-oriented path has been moving forward." Both sides emphasized that China's prospective accession to the WTO in the near term will further promote China's integration into the world economy and promote global trade and investment. Both sides stressed the importance of increased transparency and improved data dissemination. Given the prospect of China's greater degree of global integration and the relatively benign external environment, both sides noted the importance of China's moving towards greater exchange rate flexibility, which will facilitate China's adjustment to ongoing structural changes. They discussed ways to strengthen cooperation under existing agreements regarding trade in goods made by prison labor. Xiang Huaicheng urged US authorities to continue pursuing sound economic and financial policies. "Such policies should further contribute to the economic prosperity of developing countries and global financial stability," he said. During the session, US Treasury Secretary Summers stressed the significance of China's prospective WTO accession and welcomed the Chinese authorities' intention to let the market play the central role of resource allocation in the economy. In the critical area of financial sector strengthening, Summers welcomed China's intention to liberalize interest rates. The two sides agreed that the next JEC session will take place in Beijing next year. |
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