Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan confirmed on Thursday that Finance Minister Jin Renqing and of  People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochun will participate in a special meeting with the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized countries on October 1.

Finance ministers and central bankers from the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan will hold a formal meeting in Washington, D.C., on October 1, ahead of semiannual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Chinese officials will join them for an informal dinner meeting that evening.

US Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs John Taylor said that one purpose of the meeting is a "high-level engagement" with China on its currency policy.

Many US economists, manufacturers and labor organizations believe that China's fixed exchange rate gives the country's products an unfair price advantage in global markets.

Bloomberg.com quoted Taylor as saying, "The engagement is very important. China is a large and growing economy."

Although the meeting is believed by many to presage China's eventual inclusion in the G7 as a full member, Taylor reportedly said it was too early to tell.

The Chinese finance minister and central bank governor are expected to hold bilateral meetings with some G7 members ahead of the formal meeting.

(China.org.cn, Xinhua News Agency September 24, 2004)