China says willing to talk more with US

BEIJING: China said on Thursday it was willing to boost contacts with the United States to resolve a host of issues that are dogging ties, including a long-standing dispute over the value of the yuan.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner — under pressure from US lawmakers to label China a currency manipulator in a report due next month — said on Wednesday it was "very important" for Beijing to make its currency flexible.

But Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Zhong Shan dismissed those demands for change, saying the revaluation of the yuan was "not a good recipe for solving problems".

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang refused to be drawn on the issue of the yuan in particular, but admitted there were "frictions and issues facing China-US economic and trade cooperation".

"We are willing to strengthen communication with the United States," Qin said, noting that "dialogue and consultations on an equal footing" was the best way to put paid to bilateral tensions.

The yuan is just one of the issues that have left US-China relations in tatters in recent months. The two countries are also divided over US arms sales to Taiwan, Tibet, trade and Internet freedom.

Beijing has effectively pegged the yuan to the dollar since mid-2008, which critics say keeps the currency's value artificially low, making its exports cheaper and thus more competitive on overseas markets.

China, the world's biggest exporter, has repeatedly defended its exchange rate policy as necessary for the survival of Chinese manufacturers and supporting jobs growth in the economy.

Qin noted that Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai was in Washington for talks, along with Zhong, the vice commerce minister.