Washington (AsiaNews) – Chinese President Hu Jintao said that China had "made enormous progress” on human rights, but acknowledged “a lot still needs to be done”. He spoke during a joint press conference with US president Barack Obama. For some analysts, this means the two presidents have opted to maintain the status quo.

In fact, Hu’s statements before and after last night’s gala dinner shone for their vagueness. Responding to President Obama, he said that China recognises the universality of human rights and is committed to them; however, different national circumstances must be taken into account. In fact, “China is a developing country with a huge population [. . .] in a crucial stage of reform,” he said. “A lot still needs to be done in China on human rights.”

For his part, the US president said, “History shows that societies are more harmonious, nations are more successful, and the world is more just when the rights and responsibilities of all nations and all people are upheld”.

Harmonious as in “harmonious society” is the word Hu has used to define his presidency. In the name of this notion, he has justified drastic and violent action against social protests, whatever their underlying cause, whether forced seizures of land or violations of religious freedom. At the same time, he has prevented China’s economy from developing in a more balanced manner.

On this occasion, Obama opted for a soft approach. “Together we’ve shown that the United States and China, when we cooperate, can receive substantial benefits,” he said. “As we look to the future, what’s needed, I believe, is a spirit of cooperation that is also friendly competition.”

Obama also praised China for its support for the independence referendum in south Sudan and assistance in dealing with tensions on the Korean Peninsula and the Iranian nuclear programme.

Hu’s Washington visit is good for business though, with deals worth US$ 45 billion in US exports to the mainland, including almost US$ 20 billion deal with Boeing in which China will buy 200 Boeing aircraft. Overall, this should support up to 250,000 US jobs.

The US president also said that China should promote a level playing field for US businesses. “We welcome China’s increasing the flexibility of its [China’s] currency,” Obama said. However, for him “the RMB [yuan] remains undervalued,” and “there needs to be further adjustment in the exchange rate. [. . .] So we’ll continue to look for the value of China’s currency to be increasingly driven by the market”.

In spite of Obama’s wishes, markets reacted differently. The yuan Thursday rose 2 basis points from previous trading day to a record high of 6.5883 vs the USD, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading System.

The Yuan appreciated 3.6 per cent last year, but accelerating inflation has led some analysts to predict it could rise further against the US dollar this year as the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, tries to cool price pressures.