China France Photo:VCG

When asked about the current state of China-France economic and trade cooperation as French President Emmanuel Macron is paying a visit in China, He Yadong, a spokesperson from China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), told a press conference on Thursday that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, China-France economic and trade cooperation has yielded fruitful results in various fields, fully serving as the "ballast" and "propeller" of bilateral relations. 

Bilateral trade has expanded in volume and improved in quality, with China-France trade reaching $68.75 billion in the first 10 months, a year-on-year increase of 4.1 percent, He Yadong said. Two-way investment has remained stable with steady growth, and the total stock of investment has exceeded $27 billion.

On Thursday morning, MOFCOM and the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial, Energy and Digital Sovereignty jointly hosted the seventh meeting of China-France Business Council in Beijing, attracting more than 150 representatives from Chinese and French enterprises, the spokesperson said. 

Discussions focused on three themes - new paradigms for green and low-carbon cooperative development, new trends in industrial transformation and consumption change, and new opportunities for cross-border investment in innovative fields. Participants expressed firm confidence and strong willingness to deepen bilateral cooperation, He added.

The two ministries signed a memorandum of understanding on strengthening two-way investment between China and France. Both sides will support and encourage enterprises from the two countries to increase mutual investment and provide a fair, just, non-discriminatory, and predictable business environment for each other's enterprises, He said.

Going forward, we will work with the French side to effectively implement the important economic and trade consensuses reached by the two heads of state and continue to promote deeper and more substantive pragmatic cooperation, the spokesperson noted.


Global Times