Economist: Emerging economies should help set world trade rules

Emerging economies, particularly China, should help draw up new world trade rules, former Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of the World Bank Justin Yifu Lin said Tuesday. Lin made the remarks at a TV panel discussion at the ongoing Boao Forum for Asia in south China's Hainan Province. As an important trading partner for all major economies around the Pacific rim, China should join in the discussion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that includes members like the United States, Australia and Japan. The old world trade rules were set up by advanced industrial nations, Lin said, but with the rise of other economies, the world must accept a new scenario and allow emerging economies to draw up new rules for the world trade. Zhiwu Chen, professor of finance at Yale University, who also joined the discussion, said Asian countries should build mutual trust to help ease geopolitical tensions in response to signs of slowdown in the economic integration process in Asia over the past several years. Alwyn Didar Singh, secretary-general of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said Asian countries should strive to promote the development of Asean+N free trade zone model in a bid to promote economic integration. With deepening economic integration and global industrial division, the benefits of free trade can be demonstrated by places with comparative advantages churning out goods at competitive prices, said Singh.