Zhou Xiaochuan, the president of the People's Bank of China, led the Chinese delegation at the annual meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Ciudad de Guatemala. The delegation went only to observe but signed a Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the Chinese government regarding China's entry to the IDB, with Luis Alberto Moreno, the president of the IDB.

China has been an observer of the IDB since 1991, and submitted an official application to join in 1993. Over the last 10 years, China has gone to great lengths to meet all the entry requirements. The signing of this memorandum is very important. It marks the beginning of a new phase in cooperation and brings China closer to joining the IDB.

China's entry to IDB will further promote trade cooperation between China and Latin America. It will be the interests of China, Latin America and IDB. China and IDB have agreed to continue negotiating issues related to China's entry to the IDB immediately after the annual meeting.

The IDB Group was established in 1959. It includes IDB, the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) and the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF). It is the oldest and largest regional financial organization between governments. It aims to promote the economic and social development of Latin America and the Caribbean.