May 19 – U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said that he will urge China to make sure American companies are competing on a level playing field during his upcoming visit to the country next week.

While reading from a prepared statement in Tacoma, Washington on Tuesday, the treasury secretary also described China’s shift in domestic strategy to rely more on domestic consumption “encouraging.”

“After decades of reliance on exports for economic growth, China is now shifting its development strategy to rely more on domestic consumption by the Chinese people,” he said. “We call this rebalancing growth. As we in the United States save, invest, and export more, China and other countries are moving to expand consumption and imports.”

As China increases its demand for foreign goods, Washington has asked Beijing to take a more responsible role in protecting intellectual property rights and to avoid “indigenous innovation” proposals which give preferential treatment to domestic companies.

“Now, this is encouraging,” Geithner said regarding China’s growing consumption. “but we need to continue to work to make sure that American companies are competing on a level playing field.”

Mr. Geithner will visit Beijing on May 24 and 25 for the annual U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue alongside several other top American officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke.

“Our agenda in Beijing will focus on reducing the challenges faced by American companies trying to export to China and to produce in China,” Geithner said.