China-Japan Finance Dialogue: Officials agree to deepen cooperation, oppose unilateralism

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02:31

The finance ministers of China and Japan say both nations oppose trade protectionism and unilateralism and will give more roles to multilateral platforms such as the G20 and the World Bank. They reached the agreement during the seventh China-Japan Finance Dialogue in Beijing, which aims to deepen fiscal and financial cooperation, and improve bilateral ties. Zheng Yibing has the details.

Finance ministers of China and Japan sat together again in Beijing, one year after they met in Japan's Yokohama.

Liu Kun and his Japanese counterpart Taro Aso agree to continue constant communication on financial management and reform and to fight issues like unilateralism and trade protectionism together.

LIU KUN CHINESE FINANCE MINISTER "We have the responsibility to give more roles to multilateral platforms, such as the G20, the ASEAN plus 3, the World Bank, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Together, we will maintain stability in regional finance and economy, and promote global reform of economic governance."

The meeting is viewed as a chance to further implement the consensus reached by the two nations when Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited Tokyo in May. It is also expected to help address problems for the world's second and third largest economic powerhouses.

TARO ASO JAPAN'S DEPUTY PM & FINANCE MINISTER "The volatility of financial assets is increasing. China and Japan have deepened their cooperation just in case the unexpected happens. We seek to face that together, and hope to have a comprehensive discussion on that."

Besides reviewing the pension system study they created last year, both sides also discussed opening financial markets for each other, as well as tax reform, budget management, and cooperation in the third-party market.

LIU KUN CHINESE FINANCE MINISTER "We agree to take the opportunity to actively broaden and deepen policy communication and concrete cooperation in the bilateral and multilateral finance sectors, and contribute to the long-term and stable development of China and Japan ties."

The two ministers also agreed to hold the next dialogue in Japan in 2019.

ZHENG YIBING BEIJING "Besides economic and financial cooperation, the dialogue also paves way for the visit of Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe to Beijing this year, and improves ties between the two neighbors. Zheng Yibing CGTN, Beijing."