Wen Urges China, Germany to Expand Trade and Investment

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Thursday called for further measures by China and Germany to promote bilateral trade and investment.

In addition to trade in goods, the two sides should expand cooperation in service sectors, including banking, insurance, telecommunications and logistics, Wen said at a forum on China-Germany economic and technological cooperation in Berlin.

He urged European enterprises to increase their exports of advanced technological equipments, saying this would not only help them overcome current difficulties, but also meet the demand of the Chinese market.

The Chinese government welcomes German enterprises to play a more active role in promoting technical innovation, upgrading industrial structure, and enhancing more balanced development among various regions in China, the Chinese premier said.

Chinese companies are also encouraged to build manufacturing bases, marketing networks, and research institutions, he added.

Wen noted that trade volume between the two countries reached more than $100 billion in 2008, doubling bilateral trade volume two years ahead of schedule.

Wen said China has imported most technologies from Germany. From 2005 to 2008, China imported technologies worth $14.6 billion from Germany, twice as much as the 2001-2004 figure.

Germany is the second leg of Wen's European tour after Switzerland, where he attended the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. The trip will also take him to the European Union headquarters, Spain and Britain.