President Hu: China to further its opening-up

Home>>World

Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, October 24, 2003

President Hu: China to further its opening-up

Visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday met with Australian business leaders and New South Wales Governor Marie Bashir and Premier Robert Carr, and exchanged views with them on strengthening cooperation between China and Australia.

DISCUSSION

CHINESE

SEND TO FRIEND

Chinese president Hu Jintao Thursday vowed to instill a more vigorous and open economic system and create more business opportunities for overseas enterprises based on equality and mutual benefit.

China will further its opening-up and establish a stable and transparent system for foreign economic management in line with the demands of a market economy and the World Trade Organization, he said, noting China will improve its protection of intellectual property rights.

Hu made the remarks when meeting Australian industry and business groups Thursday. About 20 pivotal Australian commerce representatives attended the meeting.

Acknowledging the positive inroads already made by Sino-Australian economic and trade co-operation, Hu said there are still much broader grounds for synergy as the economies of the two nations are highly complementary.

With the Chinese economy fast growing, China's demands for energy and resources will continue to rise, and the two sides can establish long-term, stable and cooperative relations through trade and investment as Australia is rich in natural resources, Hu said.

China's economic and consumption structures are changing, and demands for services like telecommunication, tourism, education and culture are booming, which provides great opportunities of cooperation between the two countries, the Chinese president said.

Meanwhile, China's strategy to develop its western part and to revitalize its northeastern area offers increasing business opportunities, and China welcomes Australian companies to invest in China's western and northeastern regions, Hu said.

Australian business leaders said they were encouraged by the great potential of cooperation between Australia and China and would work for the establishment of all-round economic and trade ties between the two sides.

Warwick Smith, chairman of the Australia-China Business Council, said Australia's business community is "very much encouraged" by prospects for China's development and the potential for mutual co-operation.

On the trade front, China is now Australia's third largest partner and Australia ranks ninth on China's list. Official statistics show that two-way trade grew by a fifth annually over the past five years and the annual trade was in excess of US$10 billion over the past three years.

According to the China Chamber of Commerce in Australia, China's total trading volume is estimated to reach US$650 billion by 2005, bringing extremely bright prospects for China's economic and trading partnerships.

Meeting with Bashir and Carr, Hu said both sides benefited from the cooperation between China and New South Wales state and Sydney, which also boosted China-Australia relations.

Bashir expressed willingness to push forward the cooperation between New South Wales and China, saying strengthening Australia-China ties is conducive to stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.

Carr said China is New South Wales's third largest trading partner, and the state would like to work with China in expanding economic, cultural, educational and technological cooperation between the two sides.

By People's Daily Online

Questions?Comments? Click here

Chinese president meets Australian governor-general

Sino-Australian relations to attain a yet higher goal

Chinese president arrives in Sydney for state visit

Why China chose to develop spaceship instead of space shuttle? ( 10 Messages)

President Hu talks about Taiwan, SARS, RMB ( 3 Messages)

India's after joint military maneuver with China ( 6 Messages)

US manufacturers' wish to complain to WTO about RMB: a good thing for China ( 2 Messages)

Hong Kong considering shifting to Mandarin ( 5 Messages)