President urges APEC members to reactivate world economy
( 2002-10-27 09:09 ) (7 )

Chinese President Jiang Zemin said Saturday that to reactivate world economic growth,the members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum should make their markets more accessible and create more business opportunities for both domestic and foreign firms.

Addressing more than 1,000 business leaders at the APEC's CEO summit, Jiang said the world economic recovery is "not solidly based" and the APEC members need to take "more vigorous steps" both for the sake of their own economic development and in the interest of the world economy.

Jiang urges APEC members to "rein in trade protectionism." "Trade protectionism, in the short run, may have protected domestic companies by securing the home market. However,in the longer run, it not only constrains business opportunities of foreign companies, but also hamstrings the development of the domestic companies," Jiang said.

"It behooves us to keep in mind the larger interests of regional economic cooperation and world economic development, reinin trade protectionism and work unswervingly to promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and economic and technical cooperation," he added.

Speaking of China's economic development, Jiang said that the Chinese government has opted to stimulate domestic demand by implementing a proactive fiscal policy and a prudent monetary policy, accelerated economic restructuring and made vigorous efforts to promote reforms in various sectors and greater openness to the outside world.

China's economy has maintained a sustained, rapid and sound growth since the beginning of the year, and this year's growth rate is expected to be over 7 percent, according to the president."A world economic recovery serves China's development, and vice versa," he said.

Jiang said that since its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) last December, China has done a great deal to reduce the general level of tariffs, remove non-tariff barriers, straighten out and amend foreign-related economic laws and regulations, and further open its service industry.

"China will make good on its promises, deepen reforms and open still wider to the outside world," Jiang promised.

Jiang said that China will take an active part in the new roundof multilateral trade negotiations under the auspices of the WTO and continue to play its constructive role in seeking a balance of interests between the developing and developed members in the multilateral trading system.

The Chinese president told the business leaders that "what happened in recent years has proved that China's growing economy represents a positive contribution to the global, particularly Asia-Pacific economic development."

"To the developed countries, China's development means tremendous demands for their capital-intensive, technology-intensive and knowledge-intensive products. China's growing economy and rising export may satisfy the huge demands for labor-intensive products on the part of developed countries," he noted.

He said that China will develop economic and trade relations with all countries on the basis of equality, reciprocity, mutual benefit and common development.

The Chinese president also said that China has an "abiding interest" in developing economic relations with the countries in Latin America.

He said that Mexico has become a major recipient of Chinese corporate investment in Latin America, with its exports to China rising 56 percent in 2001 over the previous year.

"The two economies are highly complementary, which promises broad prospects for stronger economic and trade relations between the two countries," Jiang said.

He added that as uncertainties in the world economy and the turbulent international financial market are having a severe impact on Latin American economies and their financial markets, China can lend a helping hand to those countries in their economic development.

The three-day CEO Summit, which is themed as "challenges for development in an era of uncertainty," is one of a series of APEC events. Other events include a senior officials meeting, a ministerial meeting and the economic leaders' meeting.

Leaders from the United States, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia and Chinese Hong Kong have delivered speeches at the summit.

Earlier in the day, Jiang met with Mexican President Vicente Fox and Indonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputri.