China must boost exports as West retreats: minister

BEIJING (Reuters) - China must seize the opportunity of Western countries' current economic weakness to grab more global market share, the country's commerce minister said in a paper published in the Communist Party's ideological journal.

"It is absolutely normal if China gradually accounts for 15-20 percent of global goods and services trade," Chen Deming wrote in an article published in the latest edition of Qiushi, or "Seeking Truth".

Chen also said China needs to boost exports to address the domestic employment situation, which would in turn help stimulate domestic demand.

China, the world's largest exporter after Germany, accounted for 8.7 percent of the world's total merchandise exports in 2007, according to the World Trade Organization.

(Reporting by Zhou Xin; Writing by Jason Subler, Editing by Jacqueline Wong)