Visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Saturday put forward a five-point proposal in Lisbon to deepen the economic cooperation between China and Portugal.

Addressing an economic symposium attended by business leaders from China and Portugal, Wen said the Chinese and Portuguese governments decided to elevate bilateral ties to an all-around strategic partnership.

The economic cooperation is a vital part of the partnership and it provides vital momentum to the development of bilateral ties, he said.

The premier stressed five points in enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries:

-- To readjust and optimize the structure of bilateral trade, especially to promote cooperation in finance, telecommunication and tourism;

-- To deepen cooperation of investment in the fields in which China and Portugal have competitive advantages;

-- To join hands in developing markets in the third countries: The Chinese premier said Portugal plays a key role in economic cooperation among Portuguese-speaking countries and China hopes that Macao would continue to play a unique role in cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries;

-- To enhance regular contacts and exchange between enterprises from both countries; and

-- To properly handle trade disputes.

Trade between China and Portugal has seen marked increase in recent years. In 2004, bilateral trade volume hit 869 million US dollars, up eight times that of 10 years ago, Wen said.

During the first nine months of this year, bilateral trade stood at over 1 billion dollars, surpassing that of the overall figure of last year.

Wen said he hoped that the trade volume between China and Portugal would be doubled within the next three years.

Portuguese enterprises have so far invested in 105 projects in China.

Source: Xinhuatrengthen coordination in solving the pollution in the Songhuajiang River which was contaminated due to blasts on Nov. 13 at a chemical plant in neighboring Jilin Province.

In the meeting with Downer, the two foreign ministers also commended the new progress made by the two countries to develop all-around cooperation. They pledged to take concrete measures to enhance their cooperation in all areas.

Source: Xinhua