Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Sunday rejected allegations that China is manipulating its currency exchange rate, vowing to keep the yuan at a reasonable and balanced level.

"To allege that China is manipulating its currency exchange rate is completely unfounded," Wen said in an interview with the Financial Times.

He said that in the second half of 2005, China began to conduct reforms in its exchange rate regime.

"With more than three years of the reform, the Renminbi has appreciated by 21 percent in actual terms against the U.S. dollar and 12 percent against the euro," said Wen, who arrived in London on Saturday afternoon for a three-day official visit.

To maintain the basic stability of the Chinese RMB is in the interest of not only China, but also the world economy, the premier said.

"It is in the interests of the efforts of the international community in overcoming the financial crisis," Wen said.

Asked if China's 2-trillion-dollar reserve should be partly to blame for the financial crisis, Wen said such a view is "ridiculous."

"I think the reason for this financial crisis is the imbalance of some economies themselves. They have for a long time had double deficits and they keep up a high level of consumption on the basis of mass borrowing," he said.

Wen said China, as a big developing nation, needs a large pool of financial resources to achieve economic development and improve the people's livelihood.

"I think that it is confusing right and wrong when people who have been overspending blame those who lent them the money," he said.

As for the economic recession in the United States, Wen said China hopes for the turnaround, or the recovery, of the U.S. economy.

"We believe that to maintain a stable international financial market is in the interests of shoring up market confidence, overcoming the financial crisis, and facilitating early recovery of the international markets," the premier said.

Wen also called for reforms in international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, to "increase the voting share, the representation, and the say of developing countries."

"At the same time, the oversight of how the capital at international financial institutions is used should be strengthened," he said.

The premier noted that China, as a big developing country with a 1.3-billion population, will run its own affairs well, instead of shifting troubles to others.

"I firmly believe that running our own affairs well is the biggest contribution to entire mankind," Wen said.

(Xinhua News Agency February 3, 2009)