TOKYO, March 27 (Xinhua) -- The economies of Japan and China are highly complementary and the two countries are expected to make success stories of bilateral cooperation in a third country so as to further promote their economic cooperation, said Hiroshi Nakaso, former deputy governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ).
Nakaso, also chairman of the Daiwa Institute of Research, was invited as a guest to the ongoing Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) held in south China's Hainan province on March 26-29.
This year's BFA is themed "Shared Future, Concerted Action, Common Development." Nakaso, who also attended the forum in 2014, told Xinhua in Tokyo before heading to China that he expected a thorough discussion on Asian countries' common development this year.
The world economy has uncertainties, but Asia will remain the engine of world economic growth, the expert said, adding that he is looking forward to seeing Japan and China set successful examples of bilateral economic cooperation in a third country so as to energize more cooperation.
Nakaso pointed out that China and Japan, the two major economies in Asia, share economic complementarity.
He said China has become Japan's largest trading partner, as imports from and exports to China account for more than 20 percent of Japan's total trade volume.
Meanwhile, the agreements and memoranda signed during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit to Japan and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to China last year have strengthened bilateral cooperation in the financial sector, Nakaso said.
"It is a framework of mutual benefits that allows the two countries to support each other's foreign currency reserves and consolidate the stability of their financial systems, which is of great practical significance," he said.
Nakaso said he is looking forward to the successful economic cooperation between Japan and China in a third country. Such success, he said, would spur new investment and more cooperation.
As for suggestions on the future bilateral cooperation, the former BOJ official said that it is important for the two countries to build a sustaining and unwavering relationship.
"The relationship of mutual trust should be built at all levels, including the two nations' government departments and private enterprises," he said.
Due to the U.S. trade protectionism among other factors, the world economy is facing increased uncertainty, which will potentially affect Asian economies, the expert said.
However, he said Asia remains the most dynamic region in the world with a promising future for growth. Many Asian countries still possess the advantage of large populations, and combination of this advantage and improvement of production efficiency will keep Asia as the engine of world economic development, the economist said.
Instead of fighting U.S. protectionism with protectionism, Asian countries, especially emerging ones, should take advantage of this opportunity to further improve their investment environments.
The endorsement of Foreign Investment Law in China is exactly one of such major moves of progress, he said.
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