Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond and Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai attend the UK-China Economic Financial Dialogue at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China December 16, 2017. REUTERS/Fred Dufour/Pool
December 16, 2017
BEIJING (Reuters) – China and the United Kingdom vowed to continue and strengthen cooperation on a wide range of economic, financial and trade issues, the British government said on Saturday in a statement following talks in Beijing between the U.K. finance minister Philip Hammond and Chinese officials.
The two countries will establish a new joint expert group to exchange views on macroeconomic and fiscal policy, the statement said.
Both countries opposed trade protectionism and reaffirmed their support for the World Trade Organisation as a key pillar of the global trade system.
In addition to accelerating final preparations and reviewing the timeline for the introduction of a London-Shanghai stock connect program, the statement said the countries agreed to launch a working group and fusibility study on a UK-China bond market connect.
(Reporting by Ben Blanchard, writing by Andrew Galbraith; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
