US and Chinese officials, meeting in Washington, are to discuss the need for emerging economies to have more say in the world’s financial system.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is meeting Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan for a second day of high-level talks between the two countries.

They will also discuss the world trade system and ways to cooperate to prevent a repeat of the economic crisis.

China also expressed concern about the dollar’s role in the financial system.

Mr Geithner said the two countries were committed to building a strong and stable financial system that would lead to more balanced global growth.

KEY ISSUES

• Values of dollar and yuan
• The US will press China to rely less on exports and more on domestic consumption
• China will push for the US to make curbing inflation a priority
• Both sides will seek reassurances over accusations of trade protectionism
• North Korea and Iran’s nuclear programmes
• Climate change and clean energy

"Today, we will discuss governance reforms to help the IFIs (international financial institutions) be more representative of dynamic emerging economies, as well as strengthen their capacity to prevent future crises," he added.

China has long called for greater say at the International Monetary Fund and other bodies.

The two will also discuss ways to prevent the financial crisis leading to a rise in protectionism.

"We call on China and the United States to refrain from taking any protectionist measures," Mr Wang said before the talks re-convened behind closed doors.

Secretary Hillary Clinton was leading a separate set of discussions at the State Department that were expected to focus on North Korea.

The two-day Strategic and Economic Dialogue, as the talks are known, will conclude later with a news conference.

Differences

While the two sides appear to have found common ground in public, analysts say that differences remain.

In particular, China is worried about the value of the US dollar.

It holds huge amounts of US debt – more than $800bn (£486bn) of US Treasury securities alone.

It fears Mr Obama’s stimulus spending will stoke inflation in the United States, eroding the value of the dollar and making the US debt China holds worth a lot less.

"As a major reserve currency-issuing country in the world, the US should properly balance and properly handle the impact of the dollar supply on the domestic economy and the world economy as a whole," Mr Wang said.

Meanwhile, US manufacturers complain they cannot compete fairly with their Chinese competitors, accusing Beijing of deliberately devaluing its currency to make its exports seem cheaper. </p

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