New Zealand, China back rule-based trading system

New Zealand will work with China in upholding the multilateral trading system and rule-based free trade amid rising protectionism, the country's new ambassador to Beijing, Clare Fearnley, said.

"We hear more voices questioning the benefits of economic integration and the rule-based trading system," Fearnley told China Daily in her first interview with Chinese media. "We are a trading nation and want to see our region stable, prosperous and economically integrated."

New Zealand attaches great importance to the role China plays globally and the priority placed by China's leadership on supporting an internationally open trading system, she said.