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| Mr.Liao's portfolio covers the Department of Policy Research, Department of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao Affairs, Department of Information Technology, China International Electronic Commerce Center, China Association of International Trade, China International Institute of Multinational Corporations, and the Association of Economy and Trade Across Taiwan Straits. |
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| Working Together to Shape the Future |
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| | From: Article type: |
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning.
It affords me great pleasure to attend today’s dialogue meeting. During the third session of the “Pan-Pearl River Delta†forum held in Yunnan Province last year, we were honored with the kind presence of business officials from ASEAN countries, alongside the successful convening of the first Dialogue Meeting between Executive Leaders of the Pan-Pearl River Delta Region and Business Officials from ASEAN, inducing positive results and creating a platform of dialogue and exchanges between the provinces and regions of the Pan-Pearl River Delta of China and the ASEAN. In accordance with the consensus drawn amongst all parties attending last year’s meeting, toady we gather here in Changsha for the second time for discussions over cooperation and development, aspiring for further progress and greater achievements on the basis of what we have done last year.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Linked by mountains and waters, China and ASEAN share cultural connections and economic complementarity. In recent years, adhering to the principle of “mutual respect, equality and mutual trust, mutual benefit and win-win cooperationâ€, the two sides have seen their cooperation in such areas as trade and investment constantly intensified.
First, bilateral trade enjoyed sustained and rapid growth. China-ASEAN trade continued its momentum of fast growth in 2006, with bilateral trade valued at 160.8 billion US dollars, an increase of 23.4 percent on a year-on-year basis. In breakdown, China’s exports to ASEAN was 71.3 billion US dollars and our imports from ASEAN was 89.5 billion US dollars, rising by 28.8 percent and 19.4 percent respectively over that of the previous year. ASEAN is China’s fourth largest trading partner while ASEAN’s statistics show China is its fourth largest trading partner.
Second, our bilateral mutually-beneficial cooperation has yielded remarkable results. By the end of 2006, the cumulative value of actualized disposition of investment from ASEAN to China was 41.9 billion US dollars. A rapidly growing trend has also been identified in terms of Chinese business’s investment in ASEAN, with an increasing number of Chinese companies taking ASEAN countries as their prime destination for investment. ASEAN has already become the major market for China’s foreign contracted engineering and labor service projects.
Third, regional economic cooperation between China and ASEAN is evolving into greater depth. In November 2002, leaders from China and ASEAN countries have jointly entered into the “Framework Agreement on China –ASEAN Comprehensive Economic Cooperationâ€, thus officially launching the process of establishing the China-ASEAN FTA. In November 2004, the two sides have signed the “Agreement on Trade in Goods’ and the “Agreement on Dispute Settlement Mechanism†within the framework of China-ASEAN FTA. In July 2005, the tariff reduction process under the FTA has been initiated on a full scale. In January 2007, the two sides have entered into the “Agreement on Trade in Services†under the FTA and are right now pressing ahead with their negotiations on a relevant Agreement on Investment. In addition, sub-regional economic cooperation initiatives such as the Great Mekong River and ASEAN-East China Growth Region are also moving forward steadily along sound momentums.
China and ASEAN put together a population of 1.8 billion, pointing to extremely broad market prospects. The sides have their respective characteristics in such aspects as energy make-up, industry mix and trading commodities. Both of them are also at a stage of fast development. All these give rise to a tremendous scope for further cooperation. The Pan-Pearl River Delta region is located at a juncture connecting China with ASEAN countries, bordering with several ASEAN countries and sharing with them more than 5,000 kilometers of border demarcations. It is linked with ASEAN countries by rail, road, water and air accesses. The Pan Pearl River Delta is located on the forefront of China’s economic interaction and win-win cooperation with ASEAN. This gives the region a unique geographical advantage in the course of building the China-ASEAN FTA.
The Pan Pearl River Delta has a significant role in China’s trade and economic development. The nine mainland provinces in the region represent 1/5 of the territory, 1/3 of the population and 1/3 of the economic aggregate of the mainland and are among the fastest-growing economies within China. In recent years, these provinces have fully leveraged their geographical proximity, cultural similarity and economic complementarity with ASEAN to build stronger trade and economic relations with ASEAN on such platforms as the Canton Fair, Kunming Fair, China-ASEAN Expo, Western China International Economy-Trade Fair and Pan Pearl River Delta Trade and Economic Fair. According to Chinese statistics, the 9 provinces traded 56 billion USD with ASEAN in 2006, a year-on-year increase of 21.2%, representing 34.8% of the total of China-ASEAN trade of that year. In breakdown, these provinces exported 22 billion USD to ASEAN, an increase of 26.7% and representing 30.9% of the total Chinese exports to ASEAN. They imported 34 billion USD, an increase of 17.9% and representing 38% of China’s total imports from ASEAN. In 2006, Hong Kong and Macau traded 57.4 billion USD and 375 million USD with ASEAN respectively. The total Pan Pearl River Delta traded at 113.8 billion USD with ASEAN, already taking up the bulk of China-ASEAN trade.
Ladies and gentlemen,
China’s economy continues to grow through opening, its market continues to expand and its import demand continues to grow rapidly. This presents new opportunities for other countries’ economic development, especially of those neighboring countries. China and ASEAN have stayed good neighbors, friends and partners to each other throughout history. This year marks the 40th birthday of ASEAN. China will continue to deepen good neighborly relations with ASEAN as a good friend and partner, to facilitate regional cooperation and promote common development between China and ASEAN. In this connection, the provinces and regions of the Pan Pearl River Delta should further strengthen exchanges and cooperation with ASEAN and fully play out their strength and advantages to complement and support each other. Let us join hands to explore new areas and forms of cooperation, to inject new vitality into the strategic partnership oriented toward peace and prosperity between China and ASEAN, to reach a win-win state through equal and mutually beneficial cooperation and to shape a brighter future for China-ASEAN trade and economic cooperation.
To conclude, I wish this Dialogue meeting a complete success.
Thank you.
(Source: English Site of Mr. Liao Xiaoqi)
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