BEIJING, July 14 -- On the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relationship, China and Brazil are looking forward to more cooperation goals in economy and culture and to expand the influence of the BRICS group in the world, Brazilian ambassador to China told Xinhuanet in the exclusive interview Wednesday.

Ambassador, Mr. Valdemar Carneiro Leao, first spoke of his high expectations of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s upcoming state visit to Brazil in July, expressing hopes for further cooperation between the two countries in various areas.

“The visit takes place at the same year as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the establishment of China-Brazil diplomatic relationship, so it is a very special occasion. I think that Brazil and China will review grounds covered in the past 40 years and look forward to the future. And the trade side will be the most visible part.” said the ambassador.

Compared with the beginning of their relationship of few cooperation projects and dialogues, China and Brazil now have joined hands in many more areas and projects with good fruits, including culture, science, security, social affairs, he said. The pace in bilateral trade between China and Brazil has been stunning, especially in the past decade, as their trade volume grew to 90 billion U.S. dollars from merely 5 to 6 billion, he added.

Brazil hopes to realize a competitive economy and diversify on economic relations with countries in he wold, the ambassador said, adding Brazil has great potential with a huge market, a sharply increasing middle class, and many potential sectors such as mining, oil and electronic industry, the ambassador went on.

Brazil values Chinese investment as three Chinese banks have opened offices in Brazil while one of Brazilian major banks will start to operate in Shanghai this year, he said.

The BRICS group will hold its summit in Brazil, a good chance for the furthering of relationship between China and Brazil, he went on.

The BRICS Development Bank and the contingency reserve agreement are the two focuses of the coming summit, just as the emerging powers have made great contributions to the easing of global financial crisis, he said.

As such, he hoped the establishment of the BRICS Development Bank can be announced at the summit, despite details which may not be resolved in one or two meetings.

“We very much hope that during the summit in Brazil, heads of states of BRICS can announce the creation of the bank and witness the signing of the contingency reserve agreement,” he said.

“There are details that still need discussion, such as where the headquarters of the bank will be and the person who will be the chairman of the bank in the first five years. We hope that we can leave these details aside and announce what is important—the creation of the bank,” he stressed.