MACAO: Officials and businessmen from China and seven Portuguese-speaking countries, who are attending a trade forum in Macao, have voiced their eagerness to increase bilateral trade and have taken substantive actions towards this end.

Compared with the huge population and abundant resources in these countries, total trade among them in 2002 reached only US$6.1 billion.

At the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries held in Macao on Monday, trade delegations led by ministry-level officials from the Portuguese-speaking countries signed a framework document with the Chinese delegation headed by Vice-Minister of Commerce An Min to enhance trade ties.

The seven Portuguese-speaking countries are Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and East Timor.

The signing of the framework document, which guarantees a concerted effort by all these countries to remove trade barriers and open up wider for trade, marks the beginning of a new era in trade among them. A coming together of the markets of China and these countries will have a significant influence on global economy and trade, said Joao Jose Silva Monteiro, minister of foreign affairs, international cooperation and communities of Guinea Bissau.

Amid a global wave of developing regional and cross-border trade zones to maximize trade networks, the resource-rich Portuguese-speaking countries and world's fastest growing market China seem to be a perfect match for such a move, said An Min.

Figures from his ministry show China's imports from Portuguese-speaking countries went up to US$4.2 billion in 2002, a year-on-year increase of 33 percent, and in the first half of 2003, China imported US$3.53 billion worth of goods from those countries, tripling the figure for the same period last year.

Vice-Premier Wu Yi said when meeting ministers attending the forum here Sunday that China regards Portuguese-speaking countries as important trade partners.

Under the trade framework signed in Macao, member countries are actively committed to facilitating cross-border trade and investment, strengthening cooperation in agriculture and infrastructure construction, and expanding the utilization of natural and human resources.

Of the seven Portuguese-speaking countries, with a total population of 200 million, Brazil has become one of China's biggest trade partners. Portugal has had trade ties with China for over 400 years. The rest of the group are developing countries rich in resources and eager for investment from outside.

In a friendly gesture, China signed a bilateral economic and technological cooperation agreement to provide aid to the five Portuguese-speaking countries in Asia and Africa at the forum.

Avelino Bonifacio Fernandes Lopes, Cape Verde's Minister of Economy, Growth and Competitiveness, noted that the initiative taken by the Chinese Government to sponsor the forum was very much needed.

He explained that the forum will help the countries share information and overcome self-interest so as to construct sound cooperative relations with each other. He added that the rest of the job will be for government officials and business people from the participating countries to take concrete advantage of the enhanced ties.

The forum has done this by staging the trade and investment fair for exchanges among non-governmental business organizations and business people from China and the Portuguese-speaking countries.

Carlos Alberto Sampaio Morgado, minister of industry and commerce of Mozambique, said that the forum held in Macao is not only a platform for official trade contracts, but also for seeking potential business opportunities.

(Xinhua News Agency October 16, 2003)