| Trade between China, Japan surpasses US$200b |
SHANGHAI, Jan. 16 -- Bilateral trade between China and Japan reached US$207.36 billion last year, up 13 percent from a year ago, China News Service reported today.
Japan has become China's third largest partner in foreign trade, the report said.
By the end of November 2006, Japan invested US$57.45 billion, which made it the second largest foreign investor of China.
By then, the total investment from China to Japan reached US$180 million, according to the report.
Japan's new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe paid an official visit to China in October after assuming the premiership, the first visit to China by a Japanese prime minister in the past five years.
His predecessor, Japan's former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi repeatedly visited the Yasukumi war shrine during his five-year post since April 2001, which aroused immense criticism from China, South Korea and some other Asian countries or regions.
The shrine honors Japan's 2.5 million war dead, including convicted war criminals.
During his visit, the two sides issued a joint press communique, in which the Japanese side invited Chinese leaders to visit Japan, and the Chinese side expressed gratitude and agreed in principle to the invitation.
Chinese President Hu Jintao met Abe in Hanoi, Vietnam later. The two Parties reached a consensus on building a strategic, mutually beneficial relationship between the two countries and promoting exchange and cooperation on all fronts to create a better environment and wider space for the further development of bilateral trade.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met Abe and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun in Cebu, Philippines on Sunday. Wen accepted an official invitation from Abe to visit Japan this spring.
During the meeting, the three leaders expressed concern over the research to establish a free trade zone among the three countries and said they might designate officials as observers to participate in the research.
The three parties agreed to kick off trilateral investment treaty negotiations this year and make efforts to improve the domestic investment environment.
The three parties also agreed to promote a safe, efficient, cost-saving and unblocked logistics system among the three countries.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the normalization of Sino-Japanese ties, and next year will mark the 30th anniversary of the Sino-Japan Peace and Friendship Treaty.
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