Chinese and British officials said Monday the two countries agreed to expand their scope of financial dialogues and improve financial and economic cooperation in the future, broadening their cooperation to related areas of State-owned enterprises reform and the reform and opening of China's financial sector.

The decision was made after Chinese and British officials wrapped up their one-day dialogue in Beijing, which is also known as the Fourth Meeting of China-Britain Financial Dialogue.

During the meeting co-chaired by Li Yong, Chinese vice-minister of finance, and Paul Boateng, British chief secretary to the Treasury, senior officials from China's Ministry of Finance and British Treasury, the People's Bank of China, and China Banking Regulatory Commission exchanged views on a broad range of issues.

Their discussion included the macro-economic situation and policies of the two countries, globalization and economic restructuring, reform of State-owned enterprises, reform and liberalization of China's financial sector.

According to a joint communique issued after the meeting, China, which will hold the Group 20 presidency next year, and Britain, which will also be the presidency of G7 next year, briefed each other on the progress in their preparation for the meetings of finance ministers and central bank governors of the two groups.

The officials also discussed the proposed agendas for the two groups, saying they offered good opportunities for closer cooperation, according to the document.

Representatives of commercial and financial companies from both countries joined the Sino-British official financial dialogue for the first time since the dialogue was launched six years ago.

Li Yong said China welcomed the involvement of British business and financial firms in the dialogue as well as in the process of China's reform and development.

China and Britain need to use the dialogue mechanism to meet the challenges facing their bilateral economic and trade ties and contribute to their relationship as strategic partners. This was declared in China-Britain Joint Statement, which was issued during Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Britain in May of this year.

The statement highlighted the financial domain as a key area of bilateral cooperation.

Boateng said Britain has been China's biggest European investor, and bilateral trade has reached the target set by Chinese Premier Wen and British Prime Minister Tony Blair during Wen's visit earlier this year.

Source: Xinhua