By IANS
Sharjah : Relations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China are poised to scale new high with bilateral trade touching $19.4 billion last year, WAM news agency reported Wednesday.
“Some 2,000 Chinese firms operate in the UAE, and about 200,000 Chinese nationals work in the country, primarily in the construction sector,” the news agency said quoting media report.
Bilateral trade has grown by 41 percent over the past year, it said.
Political, economic and trade relations between the two countries have made great strides since 1984 when the two nations established diplomatic ties, the Gulf Today said.
The daily highlighted the warm reception given by Chinese President Hu Jintao to UAE Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is on a four-day official visit to attend the UAE-China economic summit.
According to the report, the UAE has become China’s second biggest trading partner in the Gulf and the biggest buyer of Chinese products.
The ministry of foreign trade has also issued a comprehensive foreign investor directory in the Chinese language that signifies the intimacy between the two nations, the daily said.
During his talks with the UAE leader, the Chinese president said that China would work with the UAE to further increase high-level exchanges and make full use of the existing mechanisms to deepen bilateral relations.