zhou xiaochuan : overview of the chinese economy against the background of the global recovery statement by mr zhou xiaochuan, governor of the people ’ s bank of china, at the joint annual meeting of the imf and the world bank, washington dc, 3 october 2004. * * * mr. chairman, governors, ladies and gentlemen : we are very pleased to see increasing evidence of the global recovery, with growth rates in most regions exceeding original expectations. while this is apparent in the world ’ s major economies - the united states, europe, and japan - economic growth rates in the developing countries and many regions have also been remarkable. undoubtedly, countries can take advantage of these developments to resolve inconsistencies and imbalance problems in their economic operations by making structural adjustments, while at the same time creating sound conditions for the developed countries to carry out their obligations in promoting global sustainable development. however, we cannot ignore the risks and challenges to sustained growth of the global economy. complex geopolitical issues and terrorism pose threats to global peace and development. the economic structural problems of the major developed countries are having a potentially negative impact on global economic development, exchange rates, and even financial market stability. affected by the geopolitical situation and the dynamics of supply and demand, the rise in international oil prices has triggered widespread concern, with a marked correlation between financial market volatility and changes in oil prices. the new round of interest rate increases not only will narrow the long - and shortterm interest rate spread and squeeze the profitability of financial institutions, but will also increase the financing costs of developing countries. emerging markets ’ resilience to external shocks is still weak, and the many low - income and developing countries have a formidable task in revitalizing their economies through structural reform. in addition, the unfair trade system and lack of external financial assistance are seriously hindering development in these countries. over the past year, china ’ s economy has maintained the momentum of rapid growth. in the first half of 2004, gdp growth was 9. 7 percent y - o - y, 0. 9 percentage points higher than the growth rate last year. foreign trade continued to grow, with total imports and exports for the first eight months of 2004 reaching us $ 722. 1 billion. fiscal revenue increased significantly to rmb 1. 4307 trillion yuan in the first half of 2004, up 30. 6 percent y - o - y. since 2003, china has introduced a series of macroeconomic

cultivated crops in canada. this image reminds canadians of the importance of the role family farms played in the expansion of our country and of the prairies as the breadbasket of our nation. then the note takes us to the canadian shield, that ancient mass of rock that covers roughly half of the total land area of canada. this is a view that many ottawans may find familiar : forest, rock and water, minus the blackflies. the image used on this bank note is inspired by a photograph taken at the soon - to - be - created parc national d ’ opemican in the abitibi - temiscamingue region of quebec. the kipawa river pictured here flows out of the park and into the ottawa river. those waters eventually run past our doorsteps here and down to montreal, where they merge with the st. lawrence. moving right, we go to the east coast of canada and an image of cape bonavista in newfoundland and labrador. this may very well have been the view that john cabot saw when 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches he landed in 1497. above these images of canada, we see the northern lights as they would appear if we were in wood buffalo national park, home to the world ’ s largest dark - sky preserve. now some of you may be old enough to remember the centennial bank note produced by the bank of canada in 1967. many people still have some of them tucked away. i know i will be keeping one of these new notes. we have produced 40 million of them, just more than enough for every canadian. they will be available as of june 1st. as all of you celebrate canada ’ s big birthday this year, i encourage you to take a close look at this special note. it will be a little piece of history. i hope this bank note captivates your imagination and instills pride in who we are and how far we have come as a nation. it celebrates our land, our history and our culture. it ’ s a bank note that reminds us of how much we have to celebrate as canadians. thank you. merci beaucoup. 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches