Expo to upgrade N.E. Asia economic co-op

The Chinese government will continue to increase economic and trade cooperation with Northeast Asian nations in the years to come, as the region has become most dynamic to boost global economic growth, said one of the country's top officials at the opening ceremony of the 9th China-Northeast Asia Expo, held Friday in Changchun, capital city of Jilin province.

"It is a rare historic opportunity to further seek mutual benefit and trust among Northeast Asian nations, as we are now dependent on each other more than ever," said Wang Jiarui, vice chairman of the 12th CPPCC and minister of the International Liaison Department of the Central Committee.

The region, which has 25 percent of the world population, contributes 20 percent to the global economic aggregate, with total foreign trade value taking up one-fifth of the world total.

"Northeast Asian countries can jointly participate in large-scale development projects in the region, which will build the regional economic circle into a global economic center," said Gim Jaehong, first undersecretary of Industry, Trade and Energy of the Republic of Korea (ROK).

Hiromasa Yonekura, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, said the Japanese business community is going to further expand their cooperation with Northeast Asian economies to achieve sustainable growth and prosperity in the region.

China's customs statistics show that total foreign trade with ROK and Japan stood at $279.2 billion in the first half of this year, about $5 billion less than previous year.. Foreign trade of Jilin province with the two countries totaled $1.73 billion.

"Jilin, as an important industrial base and commodity grain base, has great potential to lead the regeneration of Northeast China, and boost trade with the Northeast Asian region," said Wang Rulin, secretary of Jilin province.

Wang said China will step up efforts to push forward free trade, clear trade barriers and step up economic cooperation with countries in the region.

"We will further increase outbound investments and open up more to the outside world amid economic transformation dedicated to boost energy efficiency and develop a green economy. Meanwhile, (I hope) we will upgrade our cooperation via dialogues and exchanges," said Wang Jiarui.

He added that imports during the next five years will reach $10 trillion, with outbound investments hitting $500 billion in the same period.

"Together we have to focus on uplifting the quality and scale in regional economic integration by boosting exchanges in emerging industries, including high-tech and green sectors. That's a new growth point in trade and investment," said Gao Yan, vice minister of the Commerce Ministry, at the 7th Summit Forum on Northeast Asia Cooperation, which kicked off the expo.

The China-Northeast Asia Expo, an annual event that will run through Sept 11 this year, has evolved into a crucial platform for regional cooperation, attracting an increasing number of top enterprises from China and beyond.

It is the only international fair with participation from China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan, ROK, Mongolia and Russia. Last year, a total of 259 contracts were inked, with an investment volume of 226 billion yuan ($37 billion), up 23.2 percent from 2011.