China Hopes Trade With Russia To Exceed $100Bln In 2018 For 1st Time - Ambassador

China expects the volume of bilateral trade with Russia in 2018 to exceed $100 billion for the first time, Chinese Ambassador to Moscow Li Hui said on Wednesday.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th December, 2018) China expects the volume of bilateral trade with Russia in 2018 to exceed $100 billion for the first time, Chinese Ambassador to Moscow Li Hui said on Wednesday.

"For eight consecutive years, China has been Russia's largest trading partner. This year, the volume of trade of the two countries may exceed $100 billion for the first time. Now we believe that we can achieve this goal," the ambassador said at a round table.

According to the ambassador, Russian-Chinese ties have gained new development thanks to the policy of reforms and China's openness.

The diplomat added that Beijing was pleased with the fact that the structure of trade with Moscow was constantly improving.

"The Chinese know that Russia does not have only oil and gas, but also honey, flour, beef, lamb, and moreover, there is very good Russian ice cream," Li said.

The diplomat stressed that the strategic cooperation between the two countries was deepening in major projects in the fields of energy, nuclear energy, aerospace industry, infrastructure construction and others.

China wants to use the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations with Russia in 2019 to strengthen bilateral ties and deepen bilateral cooperation, according to the ambassador.

"Despite the fact that we will face serious challenges in the future, there will be even more endless possibilities. Next year, we will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia. China, together with Russia, wants to use the 70th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations to further strengthen Chinese-Russian relations and deepen pragmatic cooperation in various areas so that relations help us even better create happiness for our two countries and peoples," Li stressed.

According to the Chinese General Administration of Customs, the turnover between Russia and China in January-November 2018 increased by 27.8 percent compared to the same period of 2017 and amounted to $97.23 billion, approaching the goal of $100 billion for the year. Chinese exports to Russia during the reporting period increased by 12 percent and amounted to $43.45 billion, while imports from Russia increased by 44.3 percent, reaching $53.78 billion.