China and Myanmar signed an agreement on economic and technical
cooperation on Thursday to further push the economic and trade
cooperation between the two countries.
The agreement was endorsed by Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Guan
Mu and Myanmar Deputy Minister of National Planning and Economic
Development Colonel Thurein Zaw.
Visiting Assistant Minister of Commerce of China Chen Jian and
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs U Kyaw Thu of Myanmar also
signed the minutes of the second consultation meeting between the
governments of China and Myanmar on cooperation in trade, timber
and mining.
Chen arrived Monday and had open, frank and friendly discussions
with U Kyaw Thu over expanding Sino-Myanmar economic and trade
cooperation including timber and mining cooperation in the border
areas and reached common view in a wide range of areas.
During the meeting with Kyaw Thu, Chen said that China and
Myanmar should look forward to the future based on the present and
jointly develop on mutually beneficial basis, adding that the
cooperation between the two countries should touch on sectors
including investment, economy, technology and tourism.
Kyaw Thu said that Myanmar welcomed Chinese enterprises to
launch cooperation in sectors such as timber and mining, while
thanking China for its efforts to help Myanmar eliminate narcotic
drugs and grow opium-poppy-substitute crops.
The two sides agreed to jointly work out three cooperation
master plans on timber, mining and agriculture, emphasizing their
important significance in boosting the level of economic and trade
cooperation and bilateral ties.
The two sides also agreed to conduct study and initiate more
cooperation master plans in the sectors of energy, industry and
infrastructure after working out the timber, mining and agriculture
master plans.
At the signing ceremony Thursday, other documents including that
on Chinese government's exemption of Myanmar government's partial
debt and a framework agreement on provision of preferential loan to
Myanmar were also inked.
According to Chinese official statistics, China-Myanmar
bilateral trade hit US$1.209 billion in 2005, up 5.6 percent from
2004. Of the total, China's exports to Myanmar took US$935 million,
while its import from Myanmar stood US$274 million.
Latest figures of the Chinese Customs Department indicate that
China-Myanmar bilateral trade in the first half of 2006 amounted to
US$662 million, a 10.8-percent rise compared with the same period
of 2005. Of the total, China's export to Myanmar took US$549
million, up 30.5 percent, while China's import from Myanmar US$114
million, down 35.9 percent.
The two countries have set a target for their annual bilateral
trade to increase to US$1.5 billion.
(Xinhua News Agency November 24, 2006)