Trade ties with Russia to intensify
Representatives from Heilongjiang and Russia sign an agreement on hovercraft transportation on their boundary river in October 2006. Qiu Qilong |
The Northeast China province notched up a trade volume of $12.89 billion last year, a year-on-year increase of 34.3 percent, according to Heilongjiang Provincial Government Work Report.
The major tasks ahead for the province are taking economic and technological cooperation with Russia to a higher level, as well as expanding international exchange and cooperation.
The provincial government tries to broaden its commercial ties with more nations.
Heilongjiang Province carried out trade with 210 countries and regions last year, 11 more than in 2005.
The volume of export to Russia reached $6.69 billion, a year-on-year increase of 17.8 percent, accounting for half the trade volume of the province and one-fifth of the national trade volume with Russia.
Garments, shoes, textiles, fruit, vegetables and rice are still the main goods exported to Russia, while resources like timber, steel, potassium chloride, crude oil, pulp and rubber are the main items that are imported from there.
Heilongjiang is now pushing forward the work to sharpen the composition of its exports to Russia by exporting more electrical and high-tech products.
These kinds of products are expected to make up 16 percent of its overall export to Russia this year.
The provincial government will be alert to changes in Russia's policies and try to strengthen the support to major enterprises engaging in trade with Russia.
The province aims to expand its scale of cooperation and investment with Russia's Siberian Region in particular, with a special focus on mineral resources, forest harvesting and wood processing.
Heilongjiang has mapped out a plan to achieve a trade voume worth $8 billion with Russia this year, more than half of its total projected foreign trade volume.
(China Daily 03/14/2007 page17)
