BEIJING — Vice-Premier Hu Chunhua held a phone conversation on April 9 with British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak on advancing bilateral cooperation on epidemic prevention and economic development.

Hu, who leads the Chinese delegation to the China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD), noted that President Xi Jinping and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently held two phone conversations and reached important consensus on jointly dealing with the pandemic and developing China-UK relations.

The Chinese side stands ready to work with the British side to implement the consensus reached by the two leaders, deepen practical cooperation in such fields as epidemic prevention and finance, and provide Britian with support and assistance within its capabilities in medical supplies and other fields, Hu said.

The vice-premier expressed hope that the two sides will further strengthen cooperation under the framework of the United Nations and the Group of 20, promote macroeconomic policy coordination, cut tariff, remove barriers, and facilitate the flow of trade, so as to maintain the stability of the global industrial supply chain and promote sustainable growth of the world economy.

For his part, Sunak thanked China for its support and assistance, adding that Britian stands ready to strengthen bilateral cooperation in epidemic prevention, economy and finance through channels like the China-UK EFD, so as to continuously advance bilateral relations.