engage in competitive devaluation, and will not use the exchange rate as a tool to deal with trade frictions. since the beginning of this year, china has continued to implement proactive fiscal policies, and has adopted a series of measures to ease the burden on market participants. fiscal policies have 2 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches been playing a greater role in expanding domestic demand and promoting structural adjustment. supported by robust external and domestic demand, the hong kong sar economy sustained strong momentum with real gdp expanding by 3. 5 % year - on - year in the second quarter of 2018, marking the seventh quarter of above - trend growth. the labor market tightened further with unemployment rate edging down to 2. 8 %, the lowest level in more than 20 years. overall inflation pressure remained moderate, and underlying consumer price inflation remained unchanged at 2. 4 % in q2 2018. notwithstanding the increased uncertainties in the external environment, domestic demand is expected to remain largely resilient and the hong kong sar economic growth is forecasted to maintain at 3 - 4 % for 2018 as a whole. supported by service exports and private consumption, the macao sar economy grew by 7. 6 percent in the first half of 2018. private consumption increased by 5. 1 percent and the unemployment rate fell to 1. 9 percent while inflation rebounded to 2. 7 percent. the fiscal account continued to record surplus. the macao sar economy is expected to maintain its positive growth trend in 2018 and 2019. iii. reform of the imf the imf should continue to support an open, inclusive, rules - based multilateral trade system. the recent rise of global protectionism highlights the importance of maintaining a strong multilateral trade system. having in place a system of well - designed international rules is in the interest of all countries. china stands ready to enhance cooperation with all parties to support the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment. countries should jointly take measures against trade protectionism and strive to make economic globalization more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial to all. continued efforts should be made to promote multilateral cooperation and strengthen policy coordination. trade tensions need to be resolved in a rules - based multilateral trade system and in a constructive approach, promoting global trade and investment integration. unilateralism and protectionism will in fact only exacerbate domestic imbalances and undermine the necessary structural adjustments, which will not only have a negative impact on the countries concerned, but also weigh

on global growth. at the current juncture, multilateral mechanisms are particularly needed to play an active role in promoting global growth and safeguarding financial stability. with its near - universal membership of 189 countries, the imf is well positioned to make unique contributions to this process. we expect the imf to play a greater role. the imf should continue to push ahead with quota and governance reforms to ensure that the institution remains strong, quota - based, and adequately funded to preserve its central role in the global financial safety net ( gfsn ). quotas are the building blocks of the imf ’ s financial and governance structure. they not only form the basis of the institution ’ s lending capacity, but are also closely related to the institution ’ s representativeness, governance, and legitimacy. if quota reviews fail to achieve the above objectives, the imf ’ s credibility will be compromised, and its ability to help member countries will be weakened. china is open to any constructive approach to complete the 15th general review of quotas in time, including general, selective, or ad hoc quota increases to reduce misalignment. the quota formula serves only as a tool to achieve our goal. it is important to set a goal that is less controversial and can garner broad political support to reach consensus. in addition, countries need to make continuous efforts to implement the agreed financial sector reforms in a coordinated manner, so as to improve the stability and resilience of the international monetary system. the imf should continue to help low - income countries improve their debt management. the past decade after the global financial crisis has actually been a period of relatively strong economic performance in low - income countries, especially in sub - saharan africa. china stands ready to strengthen coordination with the international community on debt issues. we will support the imf ’ s efforts to help low - income countries strengthen their debt management capability and improve institutional frameworks and governance structure. there is still room for 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches improvement in the imf ’ s debt sustainability analysis ( dsa ) framework. debt issues related to infrastructure should be properly addressed, as this type of debt could generate future economic returns. therefore, it is advisable to take a balance - sheet approach, to analyze net debt, rather than gross debt, in order to provide better analysis on whether and how this type of debt should be restructured. we welcome the imf ’ s work in the area of fintech, the bali fin