WASHINGTON—Senior Chinese officials assured Washington that the country remains committed to liberalizing its currency, especially in the face of building economic pressures, but no new commitments were expected later Tuesday as bilateral talks concluded, a senior U.S. Treasury official said.
While the official said there won't be any changes to carefully watched wording on China's currency policy in the statement from the bilateral negotiations, the official also said there was a marked change in the tenor of conversations over China's yuan policy from previous negotiations.
Chinese officials now are much more motivated to use their currency to fight inflation, while they previously were reluctant to discuss moving at a faster pace on the appreciation of their carefully managed yuan valuation, expressing concern about export competitiveness.
Monday night, China's top economic official, Vice Premier Wang Qishan, said in a Charlie Rose interview that inflation is the country's biggest economic challenge.
Officials are gathered in Washington for the third round of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. Besides discussing the yuan, trade and other economic issues, state officials will address sensitive strategic concerns such as human rights, North Korea's nuclear aspirations and Iran sanctions.
The Treasury official said Washington was also able to secure important commitments from officials that should foster a better environment for U.S. businesses seeking to compete in China's growing economy.
Among the agreements, Beijing said it would delink its policies designed to encourage domestic innovation from their government procurement, a very lucrative industry in the communist state. Chinese officials said authorities would rewrite some of the government procurement rules that have prevented U.S. firms from competing and that they will apply at all levels of the government, from central to provincial. Beijing also will explore making a successful temporary campaign that cracked down on intellectual-property-rights infringement permanent, and will conduct inspections of Chinese government software.
U.S. firms have complained for years that China gives its own companies advantages in investment opportunities and hasn't done enough to protect intellectual property, such as software copyrights. Many are still crying foul, pointing to government contracting and rules that favor Chinese companies.
As part of an effort to develop its financial industry, China agreed to allow greater access to foreign financial firms, the official added.
