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Japan's sets cooperation with China

SHANGHAI: Japan and China have agreed to cooperate on research to find ways to develop their economies jointly, Japan's Economic Planning Agency (EPA) chief Taichi Sakaiya said on Thursday.

Sakaiya, on a five-day visit to China, said the agreement was sealed with China's State Development Planning Commission chief Zeng Peiyan in Beijing earlier this week.

South Korea is already part of the initiative.

"Our three countries will mutually think of ways to develop our economies and strengthen exchanges," Sakaiya told Reuters in an interview.

Areas of discussion might include trade, direct investment, personnel exchanges and technology transfer, he said through an interpreter.

Sakaiya met Vice Premier Wen Jiabao as well as Zeng and said both leaders predicted China's gross domestic product would rise seven percent this year from 1999.

China's rose a provisional 7.1 percent year-on-year to 8.319 trillion yuan ($1.005 trillion) in 1999, official figures showed.

"They both said that China's economic growth rate would be seven percent this year," Sakaiya said.

"What gave me the deepest impression is that they are considering ways to boost consumption."

China would support economic growth this year by developing its secondary property market, boosting salaries of government workers and raising the quality of products, he said.

Sakaiya said China had shown that it would not devalue its currency.

Chinese officials have said repeatedly that the value of the yuan currency would remain stable, though some economists have said that Beijing might devalue to boost economic growth.

Sakaiya also said China's likely membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) this year would help boost trade, investment and other exchanges with Japan.

"I think there is a big chance that China will enter the WTO this year," he said. "After China joins the transparency will increase which will make trade easier."-Reuters