Speech by Hu Jintao, President of the People's Republic of China, at the APEC CEO Summit 2010

(Yokohama, Japan, November 13, 2010)

I am delighted to meet you, friends from the Asia-Pacific business community, in the beautiful port city of Yokohama and exchange views with you on the topic of "Emerging Markets in the Asia Pacific."

The rapid development of greater numbers of emerging markets is a salient feature of the international political and economic landscape in the 21st century. In keeping with the trend towards economic globalization and industrial relocation, emerging markets have adjusted and improved economic development strategies in the light of their national circumstances and embraced economic development paths and models with distinctive features. With robust and sustained development, they have become important engines driving world economic growth. In the fight against the international financial crisis, emerging markets were the first to achieve an economic rebound and fairly rapid growth and played an important part in promoting world economic recovery. Countries across the world are now paying greater attention to the role of emerging markets on the international stage.

There are many emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region. Their development and their future will have a major impact not only on the Asia Pacific, but also the whole world. It is therefore highly relevant for this CEO summit to choose "Emerging Markets in the Asia Pacific" as the theme for discussion. I wish to take this opportunity to share with you the following observations.

First, emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region have made important contributions to world development and will continue to offer enormous development opportunities.

The rapid development of emerging markets in our region has changed states of backwardness in many countries and regions and improved the lives of hundreds of millions of people. It has contributed significantly to the endeavor of narrowing development gaps, reducing poverty and attaining the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region have actively engaged in international business cooperation. By supplying huge amounts of energy and raw materials, they have provided sufficient resources for the development in other countries. By exporting quality yet inexpensive manufactured products, they have offered a diverse variety of goods to other markets. By importing goods and services on a large scale, they have provided markets and dynamism for world economic growth. And by attracting a great deal of foreign direct investment, they have made themselves major destinations for international capital flow. Looking ahead, emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region will offer even more opportunities for world economic development in terms of resources, goods, markets and capital. The international community should work with them to seize opportunities, tap potential and promote the common development and prosperity of all countries.

Second, emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region still face many daunting challenges despite their rapid development.

We must recognize although emerging markets in our region have scored remarkable achievements in development, the overall level of their productivity is not high and their ability to innovate is not strong. They are confronted with structural problems that have accumulated over years and their extensive growth model is yet to be changed in any fundamental way. For them, developing their economies and improving people's livelihoods remain arduous tasks, and achieving industrialization, urbanization and modernization are unprecedented endeavors. They must meet the major challenges of ensuring coordinated development between urban and rural areas, among different regions and between the economic sector and the social sector. And they have a pressing need to improve their institutions and enhance their innovation capabilities. In short, they still have a long way to go before they can achieve comprehensive development and they must make sustained and strenuous efforts. The international community should view the development of the emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region in a holistic and objective way and put it in a historical perspective. While acknowledging their achievements in development, the international community must fully appreciate their difficulties and challenges.

Third, emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region have actively responded to global challenges and the international responsibilities they undertake should be commensurate with their stage of development.

As important members of the international community, the emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region have taken an active and constructive part in international cooperation and worked with various parties to counter global challenges such as the international financial crisis, climate change, energy and resources security, public health security and serious natural disasters. They have been energetically engaged in South-South cooperation, helping other developing countries speed up development and contributing to the cause of international development and the common development of all countries. We must remember, however, that the emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region are still at the primary stage of development, and both their capabilities and resources are limited. To ask them to take on responsibilities and obligations beyond their capabilities and developmental stage will do no good to international cooperation and world economic development. It can only damage the development of the emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region. The international community should encourage these markets to assume international responsibilities on the basis of their capabilities, national circumstances and their various stages and levels of development.

Fourth, the international community should improve international economic and financial systems and create an enabling environment for the common development of emerging markets and all other countries.

The existing international economic and financial systems have played a positive role in the development of emerging markets in the Asia Pacific. But it is necessary to further improve them through appropriate reform and adjustment measures and adapt them to the changing economic situation. It is important to advance reform of international financial supervision and regulation, international financial institutions and the international monetary system with a view to establishing a fair, just, inclusive and well-managed new international financial order. The international community should oppose protectionism in all its manifestations, call for and support free trade, and handle trade frictions through dialogue and consultations. It should work for comprehensive and balanced outcomes of the Doha Round negotiations on the basis of the existing achievements in order to realize the goals of the development round at an early date. The international community should take more concrete actions on development to secure resources, improve mechanisms, enhance cooperation, and ensure the attaining of the UN MDGs as scheduled.

Over the past 30 years since the reform and opening up, China's economy has enjoyed continuous growth and its GDP has risen to a much higher level. China is now the biggest producer of major agricultural and industrial products and the largest exporter and second largest importer of goods. Because of these achievements, China has become one of the major emerging markets. At the same time, China, a country with a big population and weak economic foundation, is confronted with formidable challenges, including development disparities between urban and rural areas and among different regions; serious resources and environmental constraints, and inadequate innovation capabilities. To achieve modernization, we must make persistent and strenuous efforts. And we can only overcome our difficulties through development. We have recently formulated the blueprint for China's economic and social development for the next five years. We will continue to take development as our top priority, stick to a scientific approach to development, transform the economic development pattern at a faster pace, deepen reform and opening up, and ensure and improve people's well-being. We will focus our effort on expediting the adjustment of income distribution, urban and rural development, regional development and industrial structures, promoting scientific and technological innovation, and strengthening the social security system. We will make every effort to achieve sound and rapid economic and social development.

China will be firmly committed to the path of peaceful development. While pursuing our own development, we will bear in mind the need for shared prosperity of all nations and strive for common development. We will make great effort in these areas:

First, we will continue to pursue open development.

To ensure sustained and fast economic growth, we must adhere to the basic policy of opening up, pursue a win-win strategy of opening up and develop an open economy. This is a conclusion we have drawn from our development. We will stay on the path of open development and further expand the breadth and depth of opening up. We will deepen the level of opening up in coastal areas, accelerate opening up in inland areas and upgrade opening up in border areas. Through opening up, we will push forward reform, spur development and improve people's well-being. We will continue to bring in investment and talent from overseas to support our modernization drive with the necessary capital, advanced technologies, valuable managerial expertise and outstanding human resources. We will continue to build an open and transparent legal environment, an enabling market environment for fair competition and a stable and orderly business environment so as to foster good conditions for investment by various parties.

Second, we will continue to pursue common development.

We are committed to promoting world development through our own development and achieving better development through world development. We will actively engage in international cooperation to meet global challenges and promote world economic growth. We will increase input and continue to provide assistance as our capacity permits to other developing countries within the framework of South-South cooperation and help them meet the UN MDGs and enhance their capacity for independent development. China will take part in international rule-making in a responsible way and work for a world economic structure that is more reasonable in the division of labor, more balanced in finance and trade, more rational in resources allocation and more equitable in interest-sharing. This will facilitate sustainable and balanced development of the world economy.

Third, we will continue to pursue balanced growth of domestic and external demand.

We will transform our economic development pattern and adjust the economic structure at a faster pace and make great efforts to build a long-term mechanism that boosts domestic demand, particularly consumer demand. We will further tap the potential of our domestic market and nurture new sources of domestic demand. The measures we take in this regard include promoting sustainable increases in household income and spending, accelerating the development of the new countryside and implementing the overall strategy for regional development. We will seek a balanced BOP account, an important task in maintaining macroeconomic stability. We will continue to make good use of domestic and international markets as well as domestic and international resources. We will continue to steadily move forward the reform of the RMB exchange rate regime in a self-initiated, controllable and gradual manner.

Fourth, we will continue to pursue sustainable development.

We will stick to the basic state policy of resources conservation and environmental protection. We will better conserve and manage natural resources through improved laws, regulations and standards and make our industrial structure, growth pattern and consumption model more effective in saving energy and resources and protecting the environment. We will vigorously develop a circular and green economy through economic restructuring and pursue economic development and eco-conservation in a balanced way. We will develop low-carbon, new energy and renewable energy technologies through scientific and technological innovation and comprehensively enhance our capacity to tackle climate change. We will work with the rest of the international community to counter challenges posed by the climate according to principles of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Economic globalization has brought the interests of China and those of the world closely together. A more developed China will bring greater opportunities and make a larger contribution to the world. With its huge market, better infrastructure, stronger industrial support capacity and fair market environment, China has attracted more and more multinational companies to invest in the country and offered greater opportunities to businesses in the Asia-Pacific region. We hope the Asia-Pacific business community will take an active part in China's reform, opening up and modernization process, and share the opportunities and benefits brought by China's prosperity and progress. China stands ready to work with all parties to shape an even better future for mankind.