Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am very pleased
to attend APEC CEO Summit today inBangkok, known as
"the City ofAngels". Please allow me to take this
opportunity to convey my cordial greetings to you, my
friends and share my observations on Chinese economy and the
economic development in the Asia-Pacific
region.
In the past year, we have witnessed
some heartening signs in global economic landscape.
According to statistics by the world's major economic
organizations, world economy in 2002 increased by around 3%,
better than its 2001 performance. This year, according to
some forecasts, it will be slightly higher than last year,
showing a growing momentum of recovery. This, of course, is
upbeat news. But we must also see that global economic
recovery is still in the stage of readjustment and the using
is anything but robust. There are still many uncertainties
before a steady world economic growth can take hold. Given
this background, government and business leaders of all
countries must take it as their critical task to improve the
environment for economic growth and promote a sustained
economic growth through effective policies and
measures.
I know you are all interested
inChina's current economic situation and future trends of
development. Now, let me make a short briefing for you. From
1978 to 2002,Chinaregistered an average annual GDP growth
rate of 9.4%. in 2002, when world economy experienced a
growth slowdown, Chinese economy grew by 8%. In the first
half of this year,China's GDP went up by 8.2% despite the
interruption by SARS. At present, china's economy remains in
good shape with a strong momentum for expansion. The 7%
increase target set for this year is well within
reach.
To respond to the changing domestic and
international economic environment, we have adopted a series
of policies and measures in recent years to enhance our
economic vitality and realize a sustained social and
economic development. First, we pressed ahead with the
market-oriented reform under socialism and gave fuller play
to the basic role of the market in the allocation of
resources. We adhered to and improved our basic economic
system in which the public sector plays the dominant role
along with multiple non-public sectors developing together,
promoted economic restructuring, political restructuring,
cultural restructuring and the various reforms in social
field and made them coordinate with one another to provide a
powerful driving force for the country's economic and social
development. Second, we firmly followed the guideline of
expanded domestic demand and pursued a proactive fiscal
policy and a prudent monetary policy. We took energetic
steps to expand both the investment demand and the
consumption demand, whereby to greatly boost our economic
and social progress. Third, we vigorously carried out the
strategy of revitalizingChinathrough science and education,
that of sustainable development and that of develping the
Western region. Recently, we set forth the strategy of
revitalizingNortheast Chinaand other old industrial bases,
bringing about optimization and upgrading of the industrial
structure, facilitating coordinated development among
regions, fostering new growth points and improving the
quality and efficiency of economic development. Fourth, we
intensified our dfforts ing public health, education and
culture, strengthened the social security system and
environmental protection, promoted social justice and
progress and strive to bring about coordinated and
sustainable development of the economy and society. Fifth,
we increased our all-directional openness to the outside
world and took part extensively in global and regional
economic integration. We facilitated domestic economic
restructuring through openness, encouraged Chinese
enterprises to learn advanced foreign managerial expertise
and get familiar with economic rules and practices in the
world, thus enhancing their capacity for economic and
technical cooperation and international
competition.
We have identified our goal for
the first two decades of this century. That is to build a
well-off society of a higher standard inChinafor the benefit
of well over one billion people. By the time this goal is
reached,Chinawill have completed its industrialization by
and large and put into place a well-developed socialist
market economic system. Its GDP will have quadrupled that of
2000, topping US$ 4 trillion calculated at the current
exchange rate with a per capita GDP exceeding US$ 3000. we
are fully aware thatChinais the world's largest developing
country with a population of nearly 1.3 billion. With
underdeveloped economy and education,Chinais, and will long
remain in the primary stage of socialism, and it will take
us decades of strenuous efforts to turn the country into a
modern society. At present, there are some outstanding
problems in our economy that need to be tackled without
delay, such as inadequate economic structure and industrial
structure, mounting pressure on employment and social
security and weakness in the protection of eco-system. We
are taking some steps to address these problems. Recently,
we have put forth an overall program on improving socialist
market economic system and establishing a more dynamic and
more open economic system. I firmly believe that so long as
we follow a right development strategy, coordinate the
development between the urban and rural areas, between
different regions, between the economy and society, between
man and nature and between development at home and opening
up, we will gradually translate the goals for China's
modernization into reality and make greater contribution to
regional and global economic
development.
Recently, the exchange rate of RMB
has arrested much attention in the international community.
Here, I would like to share with you my views.Chinafollows a
market-based, single and managed floating exchange rate
system, which is consistent with the current state ofChina's
economy, its level of financial regulation and the
sustainability of its enterprises. On the basis of this
system, keeping the exchange rate of RMB stable
servesChina's economic performance and conforms to the
requirements of the economic development in the Asia-pacific
region and the whole world. As you might recall, when the
Asian financial crisis struck in 1997, it isChinathat
insisted on not depreciating its currency and responsibly
maintained its exchange rate stability when many of its
neighbors substantially devalued their currencies.Chinamade
its contribution to financial and economic stability
inAsiaand the world at large. We will follow the same
approach of responsibility to the RMB exchange rate issue
this time. We will maintain the basic stability of the RMB
exchange rate at a reasonable and balanced level, while
further improving the rate-forming mechanism amid deeper
financial reform.
To achieve economic growth
and better living standards is a goal shared by people of
all lands. Given current economic slowdown in the world, we
should give a full scope to APEC's role in encouraging all
its members to bring about sustained economic
development.
Though APEC members differ from
one another in economic circumstances, they are all faced
with a common task of economic restructuring. The prevailing
economic situation in the region and the world at large
makes the job particularly urgent and crucial. In recent
years, some APEC members,Chinaincluded, have readjusted
their economic structures and achieved notable results in
expanding the home market, reforming the financial system
and improving the corporate governance of their enterprises.
These measures have enhanced the members' ability to grow
the economy at their own initiative and consolidated the
foundation for economic recovery in the region. APEC members
should do still a better job in exchanges and communication
among themselves for the purpose of drawing on the
collective advantages in economic
development.
Greater economic development in
all members requires that they continue to promote trade and
investment liberalization, remove trade barriers of one kind
or another and create a fair and equitable environment of
competition. I would like to emphasize here that an open,
rule-based multilateral trading system serves the common
interests of all APEC members. Though theDoharound of WTO
talks suffered some setbacks, so long as all parties persist
in consultation on an equal footing in the spirit of seeking
common ground while shelving differences, it will be
successful in the end. APEC can play an active role to this
end by keeping up its efforts towards the Bogor Goals. In
making bilateral or intra-regional free trade arrangements,
efforts should be made to ensure their consistency with the
WTO rules and APEC principles, so that they can contribute
to greater trade and investment in the region, faster
economic development and stronger capacity of members to
resist economic risks.
Given the vast
difference in APEC member's level of development, promoting
the development of its developing members should be an
important mission of the organization. We should vigorously
strengthen APEC economic and technical cooperation, for it
contributes to faster economic growth of the developing
members, allowing them to turn their potential market into a
real one. It also benefits the developed members by securing
them greater market access, leading in the end to the
achievement of common development and common prosperity of
all members.
Realizing sustained economic
growth is a complicated project of system engineering. It
requires not only our efforts at formulating and
implementing policies and measures for economic development
but also our endeavors to effect social progress. We should
renew our commitment to developing science, technology,
education, culture, public health, strengthening ecological
protection and environment management, rationally exploiting
natural resources and bringing about coordinated economic
development and harmonious coexistence between man and
nature.
Ladies and
gentlemen,
Realizing sustained economic growth
also requires vision, courage and skills of business
leaders. We should make full use of this APEC mechanism, get
along with the trend of economic globalization and regional
economic integration and redouble our efforts towards common
development and common prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region
by enhancing mutual trust, stepping up cooperation and
exploring for a network of partnerships of all-round
cooperation.
Thank you.
(from www.mfa.gov.cn)