Chinese President Hu Jintao told President Barack Obama in a telephone call on Friday that he wanted to strengthen cooperation between the two countries to fight the global economic slowdown, China's Xinhua news agency said.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs confirmed the phone call but gave no details, Reuters reported.
"Hu Jintao said China acknowledged U.S. efforts in stabilizing the financial market and stimulating the economy, adding that China is willing to further strengthen communication and coordination with the U.S. side in macroeconomic policies, and firmly oppose trade and investment protectionism," the Xinhua report said.
The two leaders agreed to meet in the Group of 20 summit slated for April in London, Xinhua said.
Beijing reacted angrily last week when U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told senators at his confirmation hearing that China was manipulating its currency by depressing the value of the yuan to support its exports.
But U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday the Obama administration had made no determination on whether China was manipulating its currency and would not make a unilateral attempt to block its exports.
Some U.S. lawmakers, labor groups and manufacturers have long complained that China has intervened to hold the value of its currency artificially low to keep its exports competitively priced.
China's premier, Wen Jiabao, said on a trip to Berlin on Thursday that China was determined to keep its currency at a "reasonable and balanced" level and was not to blame for sharp fluctuations in exchange rates.
Currency issues have been a source of tension between the two countries for years.
Last year China overtook Japan as the largest foreign holder of U.S. government debt and held $681.9 billion in U.S. Treasuries as of November. With the United States expected to issue new debt to help pay for a huge economic stimulus package, China's holdings could grow.
