07 September 2005

EU-China Business Summit - Beijing, 2005-09-05

On the 5th September 2005 the EU-China Business Summit was held in Beijing, under the UK presidency of the European Union. The EU-China Business Summit was an extremly successful occasion for both European and Chinese business communities, where influential political and business leaders gathered to discuss key business topics. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Monday put forward a five-point proposal on cooperation between China and the European Union, hoping that the two sides would increase cooperation in such fields as service trade, investment, and science and technology. Addressing the EU-China Business Summit, Wen said China and the EU enjoy strong economic complementarity and broad prospects in economic cooperation. To increase cooperation, Wen proposed that the two sides improve the level of service trade cooperation. Among the more than 160 service trade departments sorted by the World Trade Organization, China has opened more than 100 departments to the outside world, close to the level of developed countries. "The EU enjoys great advantages in modern service industry, and China and the EU share potential in service cooperation," Wen said. The two sides should enlarge the scale of mutual investment, deepen cooperation in investment and open new investment channels to streamline the investment structure. Wen also proposed the two sides promote exchanges and cooperation in science and technology, encourage all kinds of companies, including medium-sized and small ones, to take part in the China-EU scientific and technological cooperation. China and the EU should strengthen coordination in world economic and trade, jointly cope with challenges brought about by economic globalization and create an international environment conducive to enhancing cooperation. The two sides should properly solve differences and friction between them, the premier said. China and the EU have set up sound dialogue and consultation mechanisms in various fields over the past years, Wen said, hoping that the two sides would make full use of these mechanisms to deepen mutual understanding, narrow differences and boost cooperation.