Strengthening Peru-China ties to further promote trade, investments: Peruvian official

Strengthening Peru-China ties will allow both nations to build on the integration they have experienced in recent years and allow them to further develop economically in terms of trade and investment, a Peruvian economic official said on Saturday.

Peru is committed to strengthening its economic relations with China at all levels, said Peru-China Chamber of Commerce (Capechi) President Jose Tam during an interview with Xinhua here.

"Business is not the only thing that we can develop," Tam said, "but also investments in various sectors such as mining."

The Chinese companies make up around 33 percent of Peru's mining production and their investments in mining are about 19 billion U.S. dollars, according to Capechi.

Noting that China is Peru's biggest trading partner and the largest destination of Peruvian exports, Tam said: "China has such a large consumer power in the world that there is space for everyone."

Apart from traditional raw materials such as metals, the Peruvian companies also export fruit such as grape, avocado, mango, asparagus and citrus fruit to the Asian nation.

The Andean nation also exports alpaca wool to China which is used in high-quality textiles and fashions.

Last year, trade volume between the two nations increased to 15.87 billion dollars, of which Peruvian exports accounted for 6.97 billion dollars, according to China's Ministry of Commerce.

The good relations maintained between Peru and China is supported by a free trade agreement endorsed in 2009, and in 2013 both countries further strengthened their relationship by adopting a comprehensive strategic partnership.

The comprehensive strategic partnership "isn't just words, it is real," Tam said, adding that the association would strengthen cooperation in the fields of education, technology, economy, trade and investment. Endi