MEXICAN FOREIGN MINISTER IN CHINA, SEEKING INCREASED COOPERATION

Beijing, May 21 (PL)- Mexico's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jose Antonio Meade, concluded his two-day visit to China, with the hope that his requests for more cooperation, trade and investment will be well-received in Beijing's official media.

Meade has acknowledged that the current level of relations between Mexico and China has still not reached its potential and it is necessary to work in that direction for mutual benefit, said official Mexican diplomats consulted in Beijing.

According to official reports, Minister Meade's visit to China was aimed at monitoring the process of strengthened political dialogue agreed to by Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto and the Chinese leader Xi Jinping during the meeting that both held in Sanya, Hainan Province, on April 6.

Since his arrival on Sunday in the Chinese capital, the head of Mexican diplomacy met with the former Minister of Foreign Affairs and current Counselor of State, Yang Jiechi; with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Zhang Yesui; and with the Minister of the Communist Party Foreign Liaisons, Wang Jia Rui.

Official statistics from both countries show China's investments in Mexico at around $260 million USD, far removed from the levels China maintains with Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina.

Mexican exports to China amounted in 2012 to $5.7 billion USD and imports to $56.9 billion USD, with a deficit for Mexico of more than $51 billion USD.

Mexico's president has referred to the willingness of the Chinese government to achieve balanced trade between both countries and has called for the establishment of formulas and mechanisms that would ease trade between the two countries.

According to confirmations from Mexico's Economy Minister Idefonso Guajardo Villarreal, Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Mexico on June 5 to discuss ways to improve the commercial exchange between both nations and reduce Mexico's trade deficit with China.

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