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China shows the world the way forward

By You Nuo (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-03-23 20:08

Things seem to be brightening up ahead of the G20 summit in London, which many people have predicted in the last few weeks would prove to be of little use to resist the worldwide financial crisis.

Also contrary to the fear, as one can read from the latest edition of the Economist newspaper, that some internal forces in China may jeopardize the nation's globalization interests, Beijing has come up with its most clear-cut answers to the crisis so far:

It will keep buying the US treasuries.

It will "actively consider" beefing up the IMF capital reserve.

It is also in talks with a number of other international financial institutions to boost their firepower.

These were the main points from the press briefing given by Hu Xiaolian, director of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), on Monday afternoon.

She told reporters that the US treasuries form an important part of China's investment strategy for its foreign currency reserves, and Beijing has no intention of discontinuing the practice.

Previously, Chinese leaders had expressed concern with the results of the US crisis-control efforts and the future value of the dollar. The foreign exchange official's words on Monday must have reflected a difficult albeit bold decision. Now that words are floating about the new details in the US bank rescue plan, China's commitment to the treasuries may be taken as a vote of confidence in the Obama administration's chances.

But the more important message from Beijing on Monday is not just about its support to the US.

As a nation that has gained tremendously from its market-oriented reform and opening to the global market, China is showing enough will power to live up to its role of being a responsible stakeholder in the global business system.

Now this global system is in trouble, and China is not trying to evade its responsibility, even though there are individuals in the country acting otherwise on the ground that this is, especially on the per capital basis, still a rather poor country in the world.

Policy-wise, the SAFE leader's briefing has provided a clear framework on China's stand in the forthcoming London G20 summit. The remaining challenge is whether all the other summit participants are willing to act more forcefully, and in a more mutually-accommodating way.