BEIJING, July 27 (Xinhua) -- A two-day Sino-U.S. strategic and economic dialogue, the first of its kind, due in Washington D.C. on Monday, will help boost bilateral economic ties and pull the global economy out of its current downturn, experts say.
POLICIES COORDINATION
The dialogue, an updated version of its predecessor -- the Strategic Dialogue and the Strategic Economic Dialogue, is held at a time when the stagnant world economy is struggling to recover.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a report earlier this month that the global economy is beginning to pull out of the worst recession since the end of World War II, but stabilization is uneven and recovery is expected to be sluggish.
The report projected that the global output in 2009 will contract 1.4 percent, about 0.1 percentage lower than the April forecast, but the growth in 2010 will reach 2.5 percent, 0.6 percentage higher than the previous projection.
In addition, the World Trade Organization predicted that world trade volumes are expected to shrink 10 percent this year, compared to the previous forecast of a 9 percent contraction.
China, regarded as a powerhouse to drive the world economy, has seen signs of rebound as its economy achieved a year-on-year increase of 7.9 percent in the second quarter of this year, the first of its kind since late 2007. According to UN estimates, China's economy will contribute 50 percent to the world's economic growth this year.
The United States, the world largest economy but still sunk in credit crisis, needs to be back on track of growth.
Observers said the two big economies need to talk to each other about how to tide over the international financial crisis, and the forthcoming dialogue will help stabilize financial and economic situation globally.
They added that promotion of their bilateral economic and trade cooperation also help revive the struggling world economy.
According to Chinese officials, the dialogue is expected to focus on tackling the financial crisis and achieving sustainable economic growth, in addition to financial system reform as well as trade and investment cooperation.
David Loevinger, U.S. Treasury Department's coordinator for the dialogue, stressed the importance of the talks and said that economic policies of the two countries are relevant to each other.
Zhang Bin, a research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told Xinhua that China and the United States have wide-ranging common interests in economic spheres, and amid the international financial crisis, it was crucial for the two countries to ensure that their respective economies are sound and sustainable.
"They should take into consideration each other's concerns, and as two major driving forces, the two countries need to enhance economic and trade cooperation to help push forward the world economy," he said.
"When the two very large economies that are closely intertwined adopt big policy changes, a lack of coordination can be damaging. Coordination efforts will not be perfect, but even imperfect coordination can help," Kevin Harris, chief economist of the Informa Global Markets, said in an interview with Xinhua via e-mail.
WIN-WIN COOPERATION
Chinese statistics put Sino-U.S. trade volumes at 333.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2008, an increase of over 130 times over 1979 when the two countries forged diplomatic ties. China is the second largest trading partner of the United States and vice versa.
"The two countries are in different phases of development and their economies are highly complementary," said Li Changjiu, an advisor to the China Society of American Economics.
He said that in the context of economic globalization, economic and trade cooperation between China and the United States will benefit all.
"For instance, China has served as a bridge and transit for trade between the United States and Asia. Such a trade pattern, which combines the strength of both sides in technology, labor and component supply, has benefited all parties," he said.
He said the two countries should boost their cooperation in new energy and clean energy, areas that may well take lead in enhancing bilateral trade and economic ties, and contribute to global energy revolution.
With the biggest market in the world and large numbers of transnational corporations, the United States should make the best use of these favorable conditions to vigorously promote international trade, rather than resort to protectionism, Li said.