Monday, May 05, 2014

Trade with Africa will double by 2020, Li Keqiang tells Ethiopia conference

(May 05, 2014, (South China))--Trade volume with Africa will double by 2020, Premier Li Keqiang told the African Congress at the start of his week-long visit to the continent. Chinese direct investment was also expected to quadruple to US$100 billion within that time, Li said in a speech delivered at the congress' headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

But the deeper economic partnership should broaden beyond its current focus, he said. "The collaboration must not be limited to energy and infrastructure but expanded to industralisation, urbanisation, the modernisation of agriculture, with more attention given to green, low-carbon development and environmental protection," Li said.

Sixty deals are expected to be signed during Li's visit, which also includes stops in Nigeria, Angola and Kenya. His wife, Cheng Hong , is accompanying him on the trip. China has become Africa's biggest economic partner, and Li predicted trade volume would reach US$400 billion, up from US$200 billion last year, by 2020. Direct investment would hit US$100 billion, up from the US$25 billion in total injected so far, he said. Read more from South China Morning Post »

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