China has said that any decision on who should lead the International Monetary Fund "should be made through democratic consultation", refraining from taking a firm public position on French finance minister Christine Lagarde's candidacy.

The faxed statement from the ministry, in response to a question about China's position on who should head the IMF, repeated Beijing's position that senior management of the organisation "should enhance representation of the emerging market countries and reflect changes in the world economy".

But the statement did not say directly whether China endorses or opposes Ms Lagarde, or possibly the other declared candidate, Mexican central bank governor Agustin Carstens.

They are competing to succeed Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who faces charges of sexual assault and resigned from the position.

China's comment suggested that, at least, it expects some negotiation over who should replace Mr Strauss-Kahn.

"There is a consensus among the leaders in the G20 group that the selection of the management of international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, should abide by the principles of openness, transparency and being merit-based," said the statement, echoing the foreign ministry's earlier comments on the issue.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, IMF directors for China, Brazil, India, South Africa and Russia, criticised European officials for implying the successor should be European.

Hours before that, France's government had said China would back Ms Lagarde.

The US secretary of state Hillary Clinton today said the United States "unofficially" welcomes highly qualified women candidates to lead international organisations such as the IMF, when asked about the candidacy of Ms Lagarde.

Mrs Clinton told a news conference that Washington had not taken any official position on the contenders to succeed Mr Strauss-Kahn as managing-director of the global lender and would not do so for some weeks.

Reuters