The 25th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) has kicked off in Xiamen, Chinese Fujian Province.
Hosted by China’s Ministry of Commerce and the Fujian Provincial Government, the fair serves as a key international platform for promoting bilateral and multilateral investment cooperation and discussing global investment trends. The three-day event brings together government officials from 120 countries, 5,000 companies, and over 50,000 businesspeople.
Azerbaijan is participating in this event for the second time, with a delegation led by Shahin Mustafayev, Deputy Prime Minister and co-chair of the Azerbaijan-China Intergovernmental Trade and Economic Cooperation Commission.
Prior to the event, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng met with high-ranking guests. At the opening ceremony of the exhibition, He Lifeng read out a letter of Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed to the event participants.
Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev noted that thanks to the efforts of President Ilham Aliyev and President Xi Jinping, friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation relations between Azerbaijan and China have elevated to a qualitatively new level in recent years. During the state visit of the President of Azerbaijan to China this April, a Joint Statement on the establishment of comprehensive strategic partnership relations between the two countries was signed, and this historical event opened a new page in Azerbaijan-China relations.
“Azerbaijan is a reliable partner of China in the South Caucasus. In January–July this year, trade turnover between the two countries reached $2.5 billion, 26 percent more than in the same period last year,” the Deputy Prime Minister noted.
Shahin Mustafayev emphasized that Azerbaijan was among the first countries to support the Belt and Road initiative, and ranks among the leading investors in the project, both domestically and abroad.
At the exhibition, the “Invest in Azerbaijan” stand was showcased with the support of the Ministry of Economy, the Trade Representation of Azerbaijan in China, and AZPROMO. The stand highlighted investment opportunities in the Alat Free Economic Zone, the Karabakh and East Zangezur regions, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, as well as the country’s transport, transit, and tourism potential.
The China-Azerbaijan Bilateral Investment Promotion event was also held as part of the 25th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) held in Xiamen, Fujian Province, China.
The event, co-organized by the Azerbaijani and Chinese Ministries of Economy and Commerce, the Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) and the Azerbaijani Trade Representation in China, was attended by officials from both sides, as well as about 100 entrepreneurs operating in industry, energy, transport and logistics, agriculture, ICT and other areas.
In his remarks, Shahin Mustafayev, Deputy Prime Minister noted that the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries has significantly boosted trade and investment cooperation. He attributed the sustainability of this positive trend to the active and joint participation of the two countries in the Belt and Road initiative.
Ling Ji, China's Vice Minister for Commerce, co-chairman of the commission, highlighted the rapid economic development between China and Azerbaijan, emphasizing strong interaction in trade, logistics, industry, and green energy. He also pointed out increasing indicators in bilateral trade and investment relations between the countries in recent years.
Other key speakers delivered speeches and held presentations on the investment climate of both countries, the implementation of mutually beneficial investment initiatives, and the promotion of trade. The event continued with B2B meetings.
The Azerbaijani delegation also met with Zhou Zuyi, Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Fujian Provincial Committee, Ling Ji, China's Vice Minister for Commerce, co-chairman of the commission, and Zhou Xiaonen, Vice President of China Energy International, to discuss enhancing cooperation between the two countries, as well as between regions and companies of Azerbaijan and China across various domains.
As part of the trip, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) and China Energy International.
Shahin Jafarov
Special correspondent
