China to buy US goods to reduce surplus
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-08-31 07:18

BEIJING - China is willing to buy more U.S. goods to reduce its trade surplus and is eyeing energy deals despite Congressional opposition to CNOOC's bid for U.S. oil firm Unocal, officials said on Tuesday.

But Chinese Foreign Ministry officials urged the United States to stop selling advanced weapons to Taiwan, and not to play politics with its human rights record.

US President George W. Bush will host Chinese President Hu Jintao on September 5-8, a visit that caps months of rising trade friction as well as growing cooperation on stopping North Korea's nuclear arms ambitions.

China revalued its currency by 2.1 percent last month, but U.S. lawmakers have said they want more of a revaluation to address a trade deficit with China that is on track to surpass last year's record $162 billion.

"We are willing to import more U.S. goods," He Yafei, director-general of the ministry's Department of North American Affairs, told a news conference.

"We hope the United States will ease curbs on exports to China, especially curbs on high-tech goods," He said.

He described the U.S. trade deficit as "complementary," saying cheap Chinese goods saved American consumers $20 billion each year and rein in U.S. inflation.