While the ancient Silk Road improved trade and cultural exchanges between many countries, the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping two years ago will bring cohesive cooperation in a wider range of sectors, including the construction of infrastructure, innovations in technology and exchanges of talent, said a senior official on Thursday.

Jiang Zengwei, chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said during the China-Arab States Business Summit, held in Yinchuan by the council and the Ningxia Hui autonomous region government, that the Belt and Road Initiative will create vast opportunities for cooperation between the countries along the modern day Silk Road.

During the summit, two national-level business platforms were established in Ningxia - the China-Arab Joint Chamber of Commerce Office and the China-Arab Business Mediation Center.

Companies from China and several Arab nations signed trade agreements, including a project to construct a power station project and a satellite service cooperation deal.

The Chinese government is encouraging companies to invest in Arab states' energy, petrochemical, agriculture, manufacturing and service industries. In 2014, trade between China and Arab states reached $251 billion, up 5.2 percent year-on-year.

China has invested more than $10 billion directly in Arab nations; Arab nations have invested $3.1 billion directly in China.

Abdullah Ahmed Al Saleh, undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Economy, said that although trade between China and the United Arab Emirates has grown rapidly over the past decade, there is still room for growth.

"We need to build trade platforms for companies, traders and business associations to widen communication in the future to get more cooperation done," he said. "Cooperation between China and the UAE can be traced back to 1986 when the two sides signed agreements for technological and commercial cooperation."

Up to 300,000 Chinese people are currently living in the UAE, with more than 4,000 Chinese companies doing business there, he said.

"We are planning to invest more in China in the energy sector where we see lots of potential," he said.

Sheikh Sabah, the deputy minister of the Kuwait Department of Trade and Industry, said during the summit that the country's trade volume with China in 2014 reached $5.5 billion without oil and oil derivatives.

"The increasing trade volume between China and Kuwait in addition to oil products mean that trade between the two sides is becoming diversified," he said. "Kuwait is also maintaining good relations with the Ningxia Hui autonomous region in many sectors."

Ali Ellaithy, first undersecretary of Egypt's Ministry of Industry, Trade and SMEs, said during the summit that Egypt is willing to be the guest of honor for the 2017 China-Arab States Expo.

"Egyptian companies are willing to cooperate more closely with Chinese companies in the future, which will also help us to learn more about each other's culture."

Contact the writers through dujuan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/12/2015 page10)