China, Malaysia launch two major projects

According to Monday's CCTV, two major projects jointly operated by China and Malaysia were launched on Sunday. Officials are describing the event as a great step forward in terms of cooperation between the two countries in economics and trade. In addition, Malaysia has just become the third country to recognize China as a full market economy.

One of the two projects, an oil and gas pipeline manufacturing company, was formally launched in Shanghai. The project is a joint venture between the two countries' largest oil companies, PetroChina and Malaysia's UMW. The new joint venture, BSW Petro-pipe Company, will be fifty-one percent Chinese-owned. Its expected to be the major supplier of oil and gas pipelines in east China, with a projected annual output of 300,000 tons.

The signing ceremony of a real estate development joint venture in Kuala Lumpur was also held Sunday in Shanghai. Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi attended both ceremonies, and welcomed more Chinese enterprises to invest in Malaysia.

Malaysia is currently China's largest trading partner among the nations of ASEAN, the Association of South East Asian Nations. Bilateral trade volume last year exceeded 20 billion US dollars.

And both countries are expecting even more intensive cooperation following Malaysia's decision last week to recognize China as a full market economy.

Source: Xinhua/CCTV