Davos economic forum focuses on China
26 January 2006
The runaway growth of China and India came under the spotlight at the opening of the annual World Economic Forum on Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. Speaking at the meeting held at the Davos ski resort, German Chancellor Angela Merkel admitted that from leading in computer development Germany now faced stiff competition from China and India. Also speaking on Wednesday was Cheng Siwei, vice-president of the Chinese parliament, who talked of the country's trade surplus rising 200% to around US$100 billion. Meanwhile, in the US, Deputy Trade Representative Karan Bhatia said it was time China started behaving as a responsible stakeholder in all its trading activities. Bhatia described China's record of compliance since joining the WTO in 2001 as decidedly mixed.