President Jiang Zemin is going to end his Eurasian six-nation tour in Saudi this day today. But President Jiang is still being seen happily on a visit to Jubao,al and a large oil company in east Saudi in spite of a dozen days' fatigue from a successive whirl of visits made.

Jubail,al had originally been a small fishing village in Saudi. But it has surprisingly risen as a port city and a large modern industrial center with a population of over 100,000. Jubail,al's city construction was traced back to 1977. Acting under a unified government plan mapped out, builders of Jubail,al had made most of its rich oil resources now to have an industrial system centering on petrochemical production developed in the way no excessive dependence has been placed on the country's oil exports in developing economy. Contrasting a small fishing village as it had been 22 years ago, the place has come to boast now 119 industrial enterprises along with 38 under construction, earmarking the great historical changes made in Saudi.

Saudi Arabian Oil Company is virtually a miracle underlining the development of Saudi's industry, with a US-funded "Arab-US Oil Company" being its predecessor. As early back in 1973 the company accomplished its nationalization process. Since 1989, it began to be put under the control of presidents of Saudi origin. Since 1993, following a strategic adjustment of the country's oil development, the company has been turned into an oil enterprise undertaking Saudi's oil and natural gas exploitation. By integrating oil production with oil refining, transport and oil marketing it has been enabled to boast a daily output of 8.797 million barrels of oil topping the list of other world oil producers.

Jubail,al as an industrial city and Saudi-Arabian Oil Company both make two major oil industrial bases of Saudi - the Eastern Area. It is by no means accidental for Saudi to choose the two for President Jiang Zemin to end his visit in Saudi.

Since China has forged diplomatic ties with Saudi in the last 10 years, trade and economic cooperation has been speedily developed between the two countries. For a deepening of understanding with each other over the years the economic and trade circles of the two countries have all shown the desire to advance their economic cooperation, especially strategic cooperation in the area of developing oil and petrochemical production and technological development. Saudi is the largest oil producer and exporter known to the world. In contrast, China is a major world oil consuming country. A wide prospect is naturally presented for enterprises of the two countries concerned in developing oil production and trade and this will naturally usher in a new period for the two countries to complement each other with their advantages in economy and a period with long-term cooperation to be developed. In this regard, President Jiang was quoted as saying that Sino-Saudi cooperation in oil production is an important aspect to forging fasting ties between the two countries. During President Jiang's visit in Saudi, a memorandum for developing oil production and trade has been signed represents the desire for boosting cooperation by the two countries in oil production.

In recent years, a "China heat" has already been brought about among the industrial and commercial circles of Saudi. As things stand in today's Saudi, there are many enterprises in the country that look well to the great potentialities of Chinese markets for energy supply, thereby the desire. to invest and develop oil processing in China and increase their exports of oil products to China. A fact to show this is that discussions have been held by concerned enterprises of the two countries to explore new channels and fields for joint investment and cooperation in the effort for an overhaul of oil refineries in China. On the part of Saudi, an intensive effort has been made for undertakings of a pluralistic economy. With a strategic adjustment made of its energy policy, the country has taken measures to see to it that its door be open in an orderly pattern to all foreign investors in developing its oil production. Chinese investors are also included in this. In his talks with President Jiang Zemin, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdul-Aziz even said to his Chinese counterpart in explicit terms that he welcomes Chinese enterprises to make investment in Saudi. When speaking about Saudi's oil policy Saudi Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Naimi told the newsmen that Saudi will provide fair equal opportunities for all foreign investing companies to make investment in Saudi's oil sector. It is predicted that with the development of economy China will boost its products' competitiveness and that its hi-tech products will have all the possibilities to take an increased share in Saudi's markets. And that the country's trade with Saudi will register a yearly growth of 15% following President Jiang's visit.

Last year when Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdul-Aziz came on a visit in China President Jiang pointed out that when multi-polarization is being speedily developed following a profound change of things in today's world, it is of great importance for China and Saudi to forge greater friendly cooperative ties. This is because there is complete necessity for this for the geological locations of the two countries in Asia, he said. Though disparities are found in the two countries' cooperation level and the size of their economic strength yet when a concerted effort should be made, practical measures adopted and their potentialities brought into full play the two countries' economic cooperation and trade will be greatly developed. During his visit in Saudi, President Jiang briefed the Saudi industrial and commercial circles on the prospect offered by the Chinese economy to be developed. He expressed the hope for visits and on-the-spot investigations by a greater number of Saudi industrialists and businesspeople towards the end of finding new forms and channels for furthering Sino-Saudi cooperation, developing trade and making investment in China. Jiang's words have struck a strong responsive chord in the hearts of industrialists and businesspeople in Saudi. (By Wang Fang and Lu Zhixing, People's Daily)