Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi will attend the second round of the China-US Strategic Economic Dialogue in Washington on May 22 and 23 as special envoy of Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu made the announcement at a regular press conference in Beijing on May 15. She said Wu and U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson would co-chair the dialogue.

Jiang said she hopes the upcoming dialogue will improve strategic cooperative relations with the United States.

According to Jiang, the dialogue will center on topics such as services, investment and transparency, energy and environment, balanced growth and innovation. Representatives from the Chinese Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission will also attend the dialogue.

China and the United States held their first strategic economic dialogue last December. The dialogue mechanism has already become an important platform for the two nations to discuss long-term strategic and economic issues, Jiang said.

The spokeswoman said the Chinese and United States economies are complementary and that there is huge potential for trade cooperation.

"When trade grows fast, some friction is inevitable but I hope the two sides will resolve their disputes in a spirit of rational and candid dialogue and consultation", Jiang stressed.

Statistics show that two-way trade has surged in recent years. In 2006, bilateral trade reached 263 billion U.S. dollars. China and the United States have become each other's second largest trading partners.

Responding to a reporter's question about a bill concerning China's exchange rate policy proposed by some U.S. senators, Jiang voiced her hope that the U.S. would come to understand China's exchange rate management policies.