Singaporean Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said Tuesday he hoped to promote exchanges and cooperation between Singapore and Shanghai.

At a meeting with Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng during his visit to the metropolis, Lee said he had paid a visit to Shanghai the previous year and great changes have taken place in its construction in the meantime.

He said he hoped to further promote still broader exchanges and cooperation between Singapore and Shanghai.

Noting that Shanghai has close relations with Singapore, Han said his city's trade volume with Singapore has grown by nearly 34 percent from last year for the first quarter.

Lee Kuan Yew is on an eight-day visit to China as guest of the Chinese government. He arrived in Shanghai on Sunday from Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Source: Xinhua