Not devaluing yuan to boost exports: China

China on Friday said it has no intention of devaluing the yuan to boost exports, and expressed readiness to coordinate its economic and trade policies with the US.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused China of manipulating the value of yuan and keeping it artificially low as a means of favouring exports, although Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin was more cautious about such claims, Efe news reported.

"China has no intention to gain trade advantages by devaluing its currency... there's no basis for sustained depreciation of the yuan," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang at a press conference.

Geng also urged that Washington view the yuan exchange rate "in an objective light" and reiterated China's intention of continuing to reform its exchange regime, while stressing Beijing's willingness to coordinate with US authorities on the matter.

"He (Mnuchin) said he is interested in an early meeting with his Chinese counterpart. We also want to establish working relationships at various levels with the US to have effective communication and coordination," Geng noted.

His statements hinted at, but did not confirm, the possibility of such a meeting during the G20 Finance Ministers' summit in Baden-Baden, Germany, on March 17-18.

"China has the willingness and the sincerity to have coordination with our US colleagues to push forward China-US relations on a sound and healthy track," he added.

He recalled that, following his confirmation as head of treasury, Mnuchin had held a friendly and constructive conversation with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang, Chinese central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan, as well as his counterpart Xiao Jie.

"The China-US relation is one of the most important bilateral relations in the world. It not only bears on the well-being of the two peoples, but also concerns peace, stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region," he added.

--IANS

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