JEDDAH: China is rapidly emerging as one the most powerful trading partners of Saudi Arabia. In many ways, links between the two have grown dramatically because of each country’s strengths. China is now the second largest source of imports to the Kingdom and ranked fifth as a destination for Saudi exports. And the Kingdom is China’s biggest trading partner in the West Asia and North Africa region. It is against this background that a Chinese trade delegation held a meeting with local businessmen at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) yesterday. JCCI Vice Chairman Mazen Batterjee said China was among the most important countries in the Kingdom’s “Look East” policy. He urged JCCI members and other businessmen to take advantage of China’s prowess in the manufacturing sector and expand the bilateral scope for joint ventures.
Wang Runsheng, leader of the Chinese trade mission and vice president of China Import and Export Fair and deputy director general of China Foreign Trade Center, said: “We believe trade volumes between the two countries have already achieved the 2010 target of SR150 billion set by Chinese President Hu Jintao.” Saudi Arabia’s 2008 trade surplus with China reached SR76.1 billion on the back of higher oil prices and export volumes. “Our bilateral trade has been expanding since President Hu’s visit to the Kingdom in 2006,” he added.
Runsheng urged the Saudi business community to attend and take part in the 104th session of the Canton Fair set in Guangzhou from April 15 to May 7. “This session still has three phases, with 55,000 sands and exhibition space of 1.1 million sq. m., with attempts to overrun the scale of the last session.
This session divides the exhibits into 15 categories and shows them in 50 specialized sections. Last year, he said, 6,000 Saudis attended the Canton Fair out of a total of 180,000 overseas visitors. “There is now tremendous interest in Chinese products in this part of the world, and we expect many more Saudis to visit the fair this time,” he said, adding that 150,000 different types of products are showcased at the fair.