APEC to call for "market-oriented" currencies

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SINGAPORE, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Asia Pacific finance ministers will call for "market-oriented" exchange rates and agree to remain vigilant as their economies recover, according to a draft declaration to be issued after their meeting on Thursday.

"We will undertake monetary policies consistent with price stability in the context of market-oriented exchange rates that reflect underlying economic fundamentals," the draft dated Nov. 11 said.

The ministers of the 21 economies said in the draft that they agreed on the crucial role that supportive fiscal measures in the APEC region had played in avoiding an even deeper global recession and "resolved to remain vigilant until the economic recovery gains traction".

"We agreed that the pace of implementing exit strategies should take into account different stages in the economic recovery of member economies, the type of policy measures to be phased out, and any spillovers caused by our strategies," the draft said.

The dollar's decline has been a source of concern in the export-heavy region, especially since top exporter China keeps its currency's value closely managed against the U.S. dollar and so felt less impact on prices for its exports than other Asian nations that let their currencies float freely.

The APEC ministers' call for more flexible exchange rates echoes an editorial by U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and his Indonesian and Singaporean counterparts which was published on Thursday.

In the Wall Street Journal Asia editorial, they said "market-oriented exchange rates in line with economic fundamentals will be essential in assuring the resource and sectoral shifts to match and foster the new patterns of demand".

Washington wants Beijing in particular to take steps to allow its yuan currency to appreciate more rapidly, but the editorial did not name China. (Reporting by John Chalmers; Editing by Dean Yates)