The World Trade Organization (WTO) will coordinate with member economies to avoid protectionism and help the global economy tide over the fast-expanding financial crisis, the global trade body's chief said yesterday.

"The primary role of the WTO at this moment is to serve as an insurance policy against protectionism; especially for developing countries, whose expansion relies very much on trade," Pascal Lamy, director-general of the WTO, told China Daily in an exclusive interview.

Admitting the financial crisis would inevitably hit international trading, he said global trade is being protected by commitments made by WTO members.