Finance ministers of Japan, China, SKorea pledge cooperation |
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Fri, 04 May 2007 11:04
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KYOTO, Japan (XFN-ASIA) - The finance ministers of Japan, China and South Korea have pledged to step up financial cooperation to prevent regional currency turmoil, while taking an upbeat view on the economic outlook.The talks between Japanese Finance Minister Koji Omi, Chinese Finance Minister Jin Renqing and South Korean Finance and Economy Minister Kwon O Kyu were held on the sidelines of an Asian Development Bank meeting in Kyoto.They agreed to work on a multi-nation currency swap arrangement together with Southeast Asian nations that could swing into action more quickly in the event of a currency crisis, and to foster Asian bond markets.The ministers noted 'the continued solid growth' in their three economies but said they would remain vigilant on potential risks such as high oil prices and the US housing market slowdown.'In general we were optimistic about the economic prospects for both regional and global economies in 2007,' they said in a joint statement.Southeast Asian nations with small, open economies such as Thailand are seen as particularly exposed to currency volatility, while Japan and China have huge foreign exchange reserves to prevent against speculative attacks.But the statement made no mention of Japan's desire for China to make its currency more flexible and to allow an appreciation of the yuan against the dollar.Finance ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as well as China, Japan and South Korea also are also meeting here tomorrow to discuss how to bolster their defenses against a possible repeat of the 1997 regional financial crisis.afp/kmq
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