April 2, 2009

       H. E. Mr. Mohammad Hamid Ansari, Vice President of India,

　　H. E. Mr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of Indian Planning Commission,

　　Dr. Abid Hussain, Chairman of ICEC,

　　Mr. P. S. Deodhar, President of ICEC,

　　Mr. Mohammad Saqib, Secretary General of ICEC,

　　Mr. Zhang Guofu, Deputy Secretary General of ICC China

　　Distinguished guests,

　　Ladies and Gentlemen,

　　I’m very pleased to be invited to attend the fourth India-China Conference on “Exploring Synergies in Trade and Investment”. I am grateful to ICEC for organizing such a relevant conference, providing a platform for stakeholder community from China and India to meet and brainstorm on issues of common concern with a view to advancing our bilateral cooperation in trade and investment. I am very happy to see that H. E. Mr. Ansari, Vice President of India and H. E. Mr. Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of Indian Planning Commission are amongst us. Your presence highlights the importance the Indian government attaches to China-India economic relations.

       Recently I have attended several conferences organized by Indian chambers of commerce to interact with the Indian business communities. It is encouraging to see that the Indian business communities share a lot of common views and interests with their counterparts in China. Both view positively about the economic future of our two countries. Both are eager to further expand China-India economic relations. I share the same sentiment. Today I would like to impart some of my observations to you as how to best explore the synergies of the two rising economic powers against the backdrop of the current global financial crisis. Here, I want to summarize them into five “C”s.

　　First, confidence. In face of the downturn of the global economy, confidence has become crucial for our two economies to maintain growth and achieve recovery. In fact we have every reason to be confident. The fundamentals of two economies are good. Despite the crisis, China and India GDP grew at 9% and 7.1% respectively last year. In fighting against the adverse effects of the financial crisis, the two governments have timely taken effective measures to mitigate the negative impacts of global slowdown and boost our respective economies by putting in place a series of stimulus packages. Furthermore, the world is looking at China and India as engines for world recovery. It is believed that China and India will step out of the shadow of crisis earlier than others. All these make us feel confident about the future of our economies, though we should not be complacent for that.

　　Second, complementarities. China and India hold respective edges in economic strength which can complement each other against the downside of the financial crisis. Apart from huge markets, rich and cheap human resources, India enjoys cutting-edge in IT, financing, bio-pharmaceutical industry, etc. and China has its strengths in manufacturing, infrastructure development, etc. These potentials will not only secure the sustainable development of two countries but also offer windows of opportunities for two sides to engage in meaningful cooperation in trade and investment for the benefits of the two economies. Business communities of both countries should seize the opportunities and make full use of the respective advantages presented by the two countries.

　　Third, cooperation. It is the consensus view today that no country can handle the current crisis individually. Cooperation is the catchword today. In this aspect, China and India have two fronts to work together.

　　One is the bilateral front, which has already become a vital part of China-India Strategic Cooperative Partnership. Our bilateral trade volume of 2008 totaled US$ 52 billion, increasing by 34% over the previous year. China has become India’s largest trade partner and India is the tenth trading partner of China. But our bilateral trade only stands at merely one tenth of the world total, which is still very small and not compatible with the size of our population, which accounts for two fifth of the world total. As to the two-way investment, it looks even dwarf. How to further tap our trade and investment potential is a challenge to all of us.

　　The other is the international front. The financial crisis has brought havoc to the international economic and financial system. Demand for reform is overwhelming. It is an opportunity as well as a responsibility for China and India to promote the reform of the international financial system and accelerate the establishment of a new international financial order with a view to increasing the rights and decision making power of developing countries. In the upcoming G20 China and India should cooperate and coordinate with each other.

　　Fourth, challenges. To build good synergies, we have to face and appropriately handle the challenges arising in our cooperation. At the present, issues like growing protectionism, trade imbalance, lack of mutual confidence, and inadequate facilities and services, etc. are factors hindering furtherance of cooperation. To meet these challenges, the two governments should take necessary steps to create favorable environment for growth of our bilateral trade and investment, guard against all forms of protectionism, explore new ways and means to broaden the trade scope and improve trade mix. The two countries should launch negotiations on regional trading arrangement at an early date and encourage respective business sectors to engage in dialogue and resolve trade problems in an appropriate manner.

　　Last but not the least, common prosperity. In our cooperation, we must pursue a policy of equality and mutual benefit, with a view to achieving win-win situation. Western countries like to view China and India as rivalries in economic relations. I tend to agree China and India are cooperators rather than competitors. We have more common interests than differences. We are fully aware that cooperation benefits both while confrontation hurts the two sides. AS Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh said that there is enough room for Indian and China to grow. Chinese President Hu Jintao also once said, the steady and healthy development of the bilateral relations will not only be conducive to the development of China and India, but also produce profound impact on the peace, stability and prosperity of Asia and the world at large.

　　

       Ladies and gentlemen,

　　I just offered a few modest foods for thought for your deliberation. I sincerely wish great success of your conference. I am of the view that if China and India join hands, we can not only ride over the financial crisis but also turn the crisis into an opportunity and both will emerge from the crisis as winners. I endorse the notion that 1 plus 1 is bigger than 2. I also wish with your personal care, the China-India friendly cooperation will be further enhanced for the benefit of our two countries and the world as whole.

　　Thank you!