BEIJING, May 16: China and the United States plan to hold talks on the protection of intellectual property rights and market access for publications, Chinese state media said on Wednesday.

The talks will be held at World Trade Organisation headquarters in Geneva from June 5 to 8, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing Wang Xinpei, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce.

Last month, the United States formally lodged a complaint against China at the WTO over copyright piracy, with fake DVDs and counterfeited luxury goods adding to existing tensions between the trading giants. If the consultations with Beijing fail, a WTO panel could then be requested to referee the matter. The report did not say who would represent the two nations at the June meeting.

Meanwhile, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao called on the world community Wednesday to do more to help Africa as he opened the annual meeting of the African Development Bank in Shanghai.

Debt relief and technology transfers were among the tools the wealthier nations could use to help boost growth in Africa, Wen said at the start of the much-anticipated two-day gathering in China's financial hub.—AFP