Turkish commerce chamber pins high hopes on China Int'l Import Expo

ISTANBUL, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce said on Monday that the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) is expected to become an important platform for international trade and exchanges.

Dursun Topcu, deputy chairman of the Istanbul institution with 415,000 members, said Turkey and China should take the "maximum benefit" out of the Belt and Road Initiative by expanding cooperation on new areas through joint investment projects in third countries.

The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013, aims to build a trade and infrastructure network to connect Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes.

"Turkey has gained a very good momentum in developing its trade relations with China by attending multiple trade fairs held in China," Topcu said at a forum on the CIIE.

"The expo, in that sense, provides a significant opportunity to develop their ties even further," he added.

Citing Chuang Tzu, a Taoist philosopher of ancient China, Topcu said: "A short stem cannot reach a deep well," voicing hope for joint efforts to build the CIIE.

He also expressed the readiness of Turkish industrial and business community to attend the expo slated for Nov. 5-10 in China's largest city Shanghai.

Xu Bing, a deputy director-general of China Foreign Trade Center, called for Turkish businesses to join the CIIE as well as the China Import and Export Fair scheduled to open on April 15 in China's southern city of Guangzhou.

"They can take a share of the bonus from China's development by developing the Chinese market and boosting exports to China, so as to promote a balanced trade ties between the two countries," Xu said.

The Turkish side has so far booked a space of 600 square meters in the CIIE exhibition areas for textiles, medical equipment, electronics and appliances. Enditem