On June 6, Vice Minister of Commerce and Deputy China International Trade Representative Ling Ji and Secretary-General of the Federal Ministry of Labor and Economy of Austria Eva Landrichtinger co-chaired the 28th session of the China-Austria Joint Economic and Trade Committee. Chinese ambassador to Austria Qi Mei was present.

Ling Ji said that in recent years, the China-Austria friendly strategic partnership has been reinforced and deepened. Bilateral trade and economic cooperation maintained sound and stable development despite adverse factors such as the Covid-19 pandemic and sluggish global economic recovery. The more than 600 Austrian companies are doing well in China. The long-term, sustained growth of China remains unchanged, and China keeps optimizing its business environment. It is hoped that Austrian companies can reaffirm their confidence in investing in China. China stands ready to work with Austria to deepen cooperation in innovation and green and low-carbon development, with a view to strengthening and improving bilateral trade and economic ties.

Eva Landrichtinger said that Austria as a country built on trade attaches great significance to trade and economic cooperation with China. Austria supports greater Austrian investment in China, larger agri-food exports to China, and stronger cooperation with China in tourism, vocational education, winter sports, etc.

With regard to the recent protectionist measures taken by the EU against China, both sides expressed their commitment to free trade, compliance with WTO rules and firm opposition to trade protectionism in green sectors. Both sides voiced their hopes for China and the EU to properly address their differences through dialogue and consultation and work to avoid escalation of trade frictions. After the meeting, the two sides signed the minutes of the meeting and a memorandum of understanding on supporting the development of China-Austria Su Tong Eco-Park.

Before the meeting, Ling Ji and the Chinese delegation paid a courtesy call to Minister of Labor and Economy of Austria Martin Kocher.

(All information published on this website is authentic in Chinese. English is provided for reference only.)