Gao Hucheng, minister of commerce

At present, the United Kingdom is China's second-largest trading partner in the European Union, the second-largest source of actualized investment and the second-largest investment destination, whereas China is the UK's fourth-largest trading partner.

The two governments should establish a long-term mechanism for regional cooperation and explore chances for business cooperation in the Northern Powerhouse initiative. Also, we need to combine China's advantage in equipment manufacturing and financing with Britain's advantage in innovation, management and financial services so as to boost cooperation between our businesses in third countries and open up new space for commercial cooperation.