Top finance officials from the world's leading economies agreed in Xianghe, Hebei Province, on Sunday to cement cooperation amid long lasting high and volatile oil prices.

A joint statement of participants of the G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting said the finance officials are concerned that the oil prices could increase inflationary pressures, slow down growth, and cause instability in the global economy.

"We agree to strengthen our cooperation on these issues and stress the need to increase investment, production, and refining capacities, and to enhance dialogue between oil suppliers and consumers through the relevant forums, such as International Energy Forum (IEF)," it said.

The 20 industrialized and developing nations also need to strengthen oil market transparency to improve market efficiency and promote energy conservation and efficiency, including adopting and transferring new technologies, developing alternative and renewable energy sources, and reducing subsides on oil products, it said.

The nations, which account for more than 90 percent of the world's combined economic output and two-thirds of its total population, welcome the work launched by the World Bank and partners on the creation of a long-term investment framework for clean energy and sustainable development and the upcoming creation by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of a new window in the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility to help poor countries respond to commodity shocks, including oil price hikes.

Speaking at a press conference following the meeting, Chinese finance minister Jin Renqing said though the aftereffects of soaring oil prices are "limited" for China -- the country largely depends on coal to fuel its economic expansion -- China should optimize its oil pricing mechanism and cooperate more closely with global oil producers.

The world's fastest-growing major economy's oil demands apparently weigh on the changes of international oil prices.

A knotty problem for the Chinese authorities is that the nation cannot follow completely on the heels of the international market in deciding the range of oil price hikes -- probably with the aim for protecting relevant state-owned industries and ensuring social stability, analysts say.

According to Jin, since China imports more than 100 million tons of oil annually, higher oil prices have already forced it to pay an extra US$10 to 20 billion a year.

The auto industry needs to develop, but should conform to domestic scenario, the official said. Jin said the use of low-energy-cost vehicles should be encouraged and that the development of public transport systems should be placed on the top agenda.

(Xinhua News Agency October 17, 2005)