* China confirms plans to allow foreign companies to list
* China and Britain urge haste on IMF, World Bank reform
* Brown raises human rights, Tibet with China's Wang
(Adds quotes, details from Brown meeting)
By Daisy Ku and Matt Falloon
LONDON, May 11 (Reuters) - China and Britain agreed on Monday to prioritise opening China's stock markets to foreign companies and to arrange for more Chinese firms to list on London exchanges.
No timetable has been set for liberalising China's stock markets but British officials said HSBC bank was at the forefront of negotiations. They emphasised an urgency to make it easier for Chinese firms to float in London within months.
Authorities in Shanghai, China's financial hub, said earlier on Monday they would allow overseas firms to list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange at an appropriate time..
"We have agreed actions to support British companies listing in China and Chinese companies listing in the UK," British finance minister Alistair Darling told reporters after meeting with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan in London.
There are about 70 Chinese firms listed on London's stock exchanges at present and Britain wants to bring that total up to 100 by 2010.
One obstacle in the way of foreign companies listing in Shanghai is that, because the yuan is not freely convertible, firms face difficulty in switching the proceeds from listing into other currencies.
"We'll consider opening the forex control when foreign companies are allowed to list and trade," Hu Xiaolian, head of China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange, told reporters.
"But we also have to consider the overall balance of foreign currency flows."
BOOSTING TRADE
Britain and China have a bilateral trade target of $60 billion by 2010 and Wang highlighted sectors such as aerospace, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, electronics and environmental protection as areas that were key to achieving that goal.
"We stress the importance of expanding cooperation and technology transfers in the areas of energy conservation ... and new energy development," Wang said.
British policymakers have been keen to highlight the importance of engaging with, and establishing working relationships with, the big emerging markets as a way to kickstart and sustain economic growth.
The British economy shrank at its fastest pace since 1979 at the start of this year and experts believe the economy is facing its toughest year since World War Two as the powerhouse services sector buckles under the ongoing pressures of the credit crunch.
"Our discussions here show the importance of the UK-China relationship," Darling said. "It is delivering on the world stage, as we work closely together in resolving the current crisis and ensuring the same thing cannot happen again."
The two pledged to push ahead with promises made at the London G20 crisis summit in April to do whatever is necessary to restore growth, to expand the International Monetary Fund's emergency funds and to overhaul the financial system.
"We urge the IMF and World Bank to expedite governance structure reform, work out an explicit timetable and roadmap," they said in a joint statement outlining their agreements.
Wang later held talks with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Monday, focusing on world trade negotiations, climate change and G20 commitments.
"The prime minister also raised human rights, including Tibet, on which the UK supports further dialogue between the Dalai Lama's representatives and the Chinese government," Brown's spokesman said. (Editing by Greg Mahlich and Simon Jessop)