China seeking to develop commodity futures markets

It’s no secret that China wants more of a say in the world’s affairs – politically, economically and otherwise. Today’s target is commodity prices, which some Chinese leaders have argued are being inflated by foreign suppliers to take advantage of China’s economic growth. Officials are now suggesting that China will develop its futures market – starting with a contract for crude oil – to give Chinese investors a bigger role in setting prices. Not unexpectedly, there are doubts about how effective and credible these domestic futures exchanges will be – thanks to the dominance of state-owned enterprises trading on those exchanges. China has doubts of its own in another sphere; the head of the Chinese delegation to last week’s Bangkok climate talks said rich countries were trying to abandon key principles of the Kyoto protocol, and that disagreements remained "quite large" ahead of the big climate summit in Copenhagen in December. If Wen Jiabao is to be believed, talks on the de-nuclearization of the Korean peninsula may be more successful; he relayed comments from North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to Japanese and South Korean officials over the weekend, indicating that North Korea might end its boycott of the six-party talks. Not all of China’s foreign involvement can be seen in as positive a light, however. The (state-owned) China International Fund is planning to invest about US$7 billion in development projects in Guinea despite a recent Guinean government massacre of 150 protestors that led to strong condemnation and talk of sanctions from Western powers and the African Union. China’s policy of "non-interference" is alive and well, it seems.