MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chinese president praises trade partner Mexico

Chinese President Hu Jintao praised Mexico as an “important trade partner” upon arriving Sunday in Mexico City for an official three-day visit. In a short message Hu Jintao said that two countries “share the same task of strengthening economic and social development; Mexico has become a very important partner of China in Latin America”.

However the Chinese president words who this Monday met with Mexican president Vicente Fox in the official Los Pinos residence, have a deeper significance since both countries are engaged in friendly, but intense, competition to gain growing shares of the United States market and attract investment.

Since 1972, when relations were re-established, "friendly cooperation in different areas has been extremely fruitful" underlined the visiting leader who this Monday laid a floral wreath at the Altar of the Fatherland to commemorate the start of a week of celebrations surrounding Mexico's September 16, 1810, declaration of independence from Spain.

The two presidents are scheduled to sign several agreements among which the elimination of double taxation, agricultural cooperation, cultural exchanges as well as sharing experiences in social development.

On the strictly political agenda Mr. Hu Jintao and Mr. Fox will "exchange points of view on the multilateral issues to be discussed during the coming United Nations General Assembly beginning September 14 in New York", to where the two will be flying together from Mexico City.

China is Mexico's second-largest trade partner in the region and the two nations had a trade exchange of almost 15 billion US dollars in 2004. Nevertheless Mexican businessmen claim that cheap Chinese imports are damaging the domestic industry, but the Fox administration official line is that China must be seen as a dynamic partner in economic globalization affairs and not as a trade threat.

Mr. Hu Jintao a hundred people delegation includes officials and businessmen.