China has never deliberately pursued trade surplus: central bank governor

China has never deliberately pursued a trade surplus, nor does it intend to gain trade advantages through currency depreciation, Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), said this week at a G20 meeting.

Pan warned in a speech at the second meeting of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Asheville, North Carolina, that rising trade frictions, protectionism and unpredictable policy environments have been major drivers of global imbalances in recent years.

He urged all G20 members to uphold multilateralism, make full use of global financial cooperation platforms and strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination to jointly address global risks and challenges.

To resolve global imbalances, Pan called on all countries to advance structural reforms, with countries in deficit cutting their fiscal deficits and raising domestic savings, and countries in surplus moderately boosting consumption and investment.

He stressed that a commitment should be made over the medium term, with clear policy plans firmly implemented.

He noted that economic growth remains the fundamental solution to developing countries' debt challenges. Pan reiterated China's commitment to expanding domestic demand and advancing high-level opening-up, offering global markets new opportunities through its vast consumer base and contributing to a new dynamic equilibrium in the world economy.

Pan also said China has no need or intention to gain trade advantages through currency depreciation. With the upgrading of its export structure and wider use of hedging tools and renminbi settlement, Chinese trade’s sensitivity to exchange rates has declined significantly, he said.

China operates a managed floating exchange rate system that lets market forces play a decisive role while guarding against "herd behavior" and irrational expectations, Pan added.

The PBOC will maintain a moderately accommodative monetary policy to support stable growth and smooth market operations, he said.

China has never deliberately pursued trade surplus: central bank governor

British, French, and Canadian leaders issued a joint statement on Tuesday affirming their "commitment to protect the two-state solution" in the face of the "systematic expansion" of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

"A two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is critical for peace, stability and security in the Middle East and beyond," and the settlements "pose a direct and urgent threat to that vision for peace," British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in the joint statement.

"Settlements are illegal under international law," they said, condemning the Israeli government's latest decision to progress the E1 settlement, and the "dramatic increase in settler violence."

The three countries will therefore ban the importation of goods from settlements and enforce targeted measures against settlements and those who facilitate them or profit from them, according to the joint statement.

The three leaders also reiterated their desire for a close and productive partnership with Israel. "We support a safe and secure Israel, living alongside a safe and secure Palestine," they said.

Britain, France, and Canada affirm commitment to two-state solution