Cheng Siwei, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Chinese National People's Congress (NPC), met in Beijing Tuesday with an American delegation headed by George Russell, president of the National Bureau of Asian Research.

The 98-person delegation consists of members of the Russell 20-20 Foundation and the National Bureau of Asian Research and representatives from American companies.

During their hour-long talk, Cheng spent most of his time taking questions from delegation members on China-US relations, China's capital markets and foreign investment, the government's energy strategy and its timetable to make Renminbi, the nation's currency, fully convertible.

Cheng said that good relations between China, the world's largest developing country, and the United States, the world's largest developed economy, would benefit not only people of both countries but also the world at large.

Speaking highly of China's economic development, Russell said that China has become a vibrant emerging market receiving great attention from American business and researchers.
 
The delegation came to China at the invitation of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT). CCPIT vice president Yu Ping also attended the meeting.

(Xinhua News Agency November 10, 2004)