On July 1, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao met with Swiss Federal Councillor and Minister of Economy, Education and Research Pamran for an in-depth exchange of views on China-Sweden economic and trade relations. Nearly 30 representatives from the business community attended the meeting, including the Swiss Economic Federation, the Mechatronics and Metals Association, the Federation of the Watch Industry and other institutions, as well as Nestle, Novartis, Glencore and other enterprises.
Wang Wentao said that under the guidance of the Sino-Swiss innovation strategic partnership, the development momentum of China-Switzerland economic and trade relations is good. China and Switzerland have close economic ties and strong complementarity, and the bilateral free trade agreement has played a positive role in promoting the growth of trade and investment between the two countries over the past 10 years. China is ready to work with Switzerland to implement the important economic and trade consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, start negotiations on upgrading the China-Switzerland FTA as soon as possible, and promote the upgrading of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. It is hoped that the Swiss side will adhere to free trade, oppose protectionism and unilateralism, and continue to provide a fair and open investment environment for Chinese enterprises.
Pamran said that China is one of Switzerland's most important economic and trade partners. The Swiss side highly appreciates the positive role of the Swiss-China FTA, and all sectors of the Swiss community, especially the business community, look forward to the early upgrade of the agreement. As an open country, Switzerland has always opposed protectionism and restrictions on economic and trade cooperation, and hopes to strengthen cooperation with China in regulatory policies and intellectual property protection, so as to jointly create a fair and non-discriminatory business environment for enterprises.
After the meeting, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding and agreed to formally launch negotiations on the upgrade of the China-Switzerland FTA as soon as possible. The two sides also attended and addressed the Sino-Swiss Economic Forum.
Source: Information Office of the Ministry of Commerce