Russo-Chinese trade may top 13 billion dollars

The Russian-Chinese trade this year may top 13 billion dollars, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov told reporter on Friday in Moscow.

In the past few years trade between Russia and China has been growing at a good speed. In 1999-2002 it more than doubled and reached nearly 12 billion dollars," said Alexander Losyukov. "This positive tendency continues in 2003," pointed out the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister. "Within past seven months of this year trade between the two countries has gone up and amounted to 8.12 billion dollars. Thus, it can top 13 billion dollars this year." However, problems do exist in bilateral economic relations, admitted Losyukov. "It does not suit us that raw materials (oil and unprocessed timber) and goods of the primary process stage (ferrous and non-ferrous metals) continue to dominate in the Russian exports," pointed out the Deputy Foreign Minister. "We are trying to considerably increase the number of machinery and high-tech products in our exports. I have in mind first of all equipment for regular and nuclear power plants and for civil aviation," said Alexander Losyukov.

According to the Deputy Minister, "it is necessary to cardinally expand interaction in the sphere of investments and industrial cooperation where the number of projects is absolutely insufficient today." As the trade is growing, it is very important to efficiently resolve the questions concerning a mutual access of goods to the markets of the two countries. "It is necessary to settle quickly and with an account of the interests of each other the problems of anti-dumping investigations, quotas and so on," added the high ranking Russian diplomat.