Italy and China aim for 100 billion dollars in trade by 2015

Oct 7, 2010, 14:43 GMT

Rome - Italy and China aim to boost their bilateral trade to a value of 100 billion dollars over the next five years, officials said Thursday.

The target was set during talks in Rome between Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and Chinese premier Wen Jiabao.

'To date, Italian investments in China amount to 5 billion dollars and consist of some 6,000 projects, but these numbers remain too small,' Wen said.

China 'remains a great opportunity' for Italian businesses and firms, Berlusconi said.

He stressed China's position as the world's leading exporting nation - it overtook Germany last year - and second largest economy.

The two leaders held a joint news conference and presided over a ceremony in which several agreements were signed by ministers from both countries.

Berlusconi welcomed assurances from Wen that foreign companies seeking to invest in China would receive the same treatment as local firms.

'This in regard to fiscal conditions, bureaucratic processes and, most importantly, equal opportunities for project tenders,' Berlusconi said.

'China regards the introduction of technology and foreign investments as crucial for its development,' Wen said.

He then turned to several Italian business leaders present and joked, 'I know that in this room there are many modern-day Marco Polos,' referring to the 13th and 14th-century Venetian merchant who pioneered trade with the Far East by travelling to China.

On a more serious note, Wen appeared keen to address the topic of counterfeiting - a concern frequently raised by Italian manufacturers, who charge that product patents are not respected by their Chinese counterparts.

'I tell Chinese entrepreneurs that intellectual property is a great social virtue,' Wen said.

'We cannot allow piracy (of products) to continue,' he added.

The president of Italy's industrialist lobby Confindustria, Emma Marcegaglia, also spoke at the gathering, noting that Italy ranked 'only' 21st among nations exporting to China.

'We still have a lot to do' to improve this situation, she said.

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