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Foreign experts back China's measures to combat crisis

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-21 10:39

As the financial crisis spreads around the globe, China has proposed a series of measures which have been favorably received by some foreign experts who are to attend the 10th China development forum to be held next Monday.

China opportunity anticipated

The 4-trillion-yuan ($586 billion) stimulus package adopted by the Chinese government to spur the Chinese economy has offered opportunities to other nations and regions, some foreign economic experts said.

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In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, Wook Chae, president of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, said that in light of the current global economic recession, the Chinese government quickly introduced a large stimulus plan and started to implement it, a move quicker and more effective than some other major economies.

Yuji Kiyokawa, president executive of the Japan-China Economic Association, said China had studied solutions to the crisis at an early stage, and adopted various policies including expanding domestic demand and improving people's livelihood, offering not only a chance for the Chinese people to improve their lives, but also a big opportunity for foreign companies to expand their businesses in China.

Angel Gurria, secretary-general of the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), said China's huge stimulus plan will also contribute to the world economy.

He said China's steady and healthy economic development will help the economies of other regions to develop as well. China's need for agricultural, mining and machinery products will provide opportunities for foreign investors and enterprises.

Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asian Institute of the National University of Singapore, stressed the need for China to maintain healthy development of its economy. China getting its own business done, according Zheng, will in itself be a big contribution to the world economy.

The financial crisis of course has also cast a shadow on the Chinese economy, Zheng said, but it also offers an opportunity for China to upgrade its economic structure and industry. As the upgrade normally involves technology, it thus offers a good opportunity for foreign investment.

China's stance hailed

China's firm stance on anti-protectionism amid the contagious financial crisis has also sparked positive world reaction.

Kazuo Furukawa, president of Japan's electronics giant Hitachi Ltd, said in a written interview with Xinhua that China's anti-protectionism stance should be lauded as trade protectionism will only aggravate the ailing world economy.

He said protectionism holds a horrified fascination at a time when the financial crisis has taken a heavy toll on the world's economies, where employment rates have constantly been shrinking.

Job opportunities will become even more scarce if protectionism triggers further shrinkage in world trade, Furukawa said.

He said that in this respect international cooperation and anti-protectionism that China advocates is of great significance and should be applauded by the international community.

Furukawa believes that to eliminate the adverse effects of the financial crisis, world economies should restore mutual trust and confidence.

If China's stance can prompt other countries to follow suit, and thus boost mutual trust and confidence, which will stimulate the economy and increase trade opportunities, China will surely have made an enormous contribution to the world to combat the economic crisis.

Gurria expressed similar sentiments on China's stance.

He said it is right the Chinese government has objected to protectionism in trade and capital flows.

Gurria said opening up domestic and international markets can promote trade competition and create wealth, and it is also a prerequisite for economic recovery and long-term development.

He said China's policy of opening-up and emergence in the global economy is a good example. It has boosted its economic development and reduced poverty considerably.

Zheng said China's advocacy of international cooperation to combat protectionism, demonstrates China is showing its responsibility in helping to pull the world out of the current economic mire.

He said countries across the world are enjoying increasingly close ties and are relying more on each other, adding that cooperation and anti-protectionism among them is a must in response to the crisis.

Trade protectionism will reduce cooperation between countries and make the current situation even worse, Zheng said.

China has made it clear it opposes any form of trade protectionism, and advocates international cooperation. This, Zheng said, is wise, correct and pragmatic.