China inked 10 contracts respectively with 10 ASEAN member countries in Nanning on Tuesday, with the contract value standing at US$600 million, according to sources with China's Ministry of Commerce.

 

The contracts include a Thai sugar project in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a textile project by Myanmar in central China's Jiangxi Province, and a business district jointly developed by Brunei and Nanning, said the sources.

 

Other contracts cover sectors ranging from infrastructure construction, hydropower, energy conservation, aquatic products to grain and oil products.

 

ASEAN Secretary-General Ong Keng Yong said after the signing ceremony that the ASEAN countries had become an important source for China's efforts to attract foreign direct investment, as well as a popular destination for China's overseas investment.

 

Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai, ministers of economy or trade from the 10 ASEAN member countries attended the ceremony, which was held on the sidelines of the third China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit.

 

The summit opened on Tuesday in Nanning, capital of Guangxi.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 1, 2006)