"The Prospects of Bangladesh China Cooperation are Looking Forward to" - On the Bangladesh Business, Trade and Investment Summit

"China is Bangladesh's largest trade partner, and bilateral trade volume is increasing every year. However, we still see vast space for further deepening trade relations. We hope to further reduce the bilateral trade deficit and establish a more stable trade cooperation relationship. The cooperation between Bangladesh and China has promising prospects, and we can work together to create a more prosperous future." At the Bangladesh Business, Trade and Investment Summit held in Beijing on July 9th, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said. This summit is jointly hosted by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority, aiming to provide a platform for the Chinese business community to explore trade and investment opportunities in Bangladesh.

In recent years, Bangladesh's economy has steadily grown, maintaining an economic growth rate of 5% to 6%, making it the second highest growing economy in South Asia. Bangladesh is implementing privatization policies, improving the investment environment, vigorously attracting foreign investment, and actively creating export processing zones. China is the largest trading partner of Bangladesh, and Bangladesh is China's second largest trading partner in South Asia. The two countries have a solid foundation in cooperation in areas such as textiles and clothing, road and bridge construction, energy, and agriculture. There is huge potential for cooperation in infrastructure, food processing, industrial parks, and other fields. The bilateral economic and trade relations have shown strong development momentum.

Sheikh Hasina stated that "Bangladesh is establishing special economic zones and the government is taking measures to promote business development, creating a more friendly business environment for investors. Bangladesh warmly welcomes Chinese companies to invest in key areas such as infrastructure, energy, renewable energy, and logistics, which will help Bangladesh achieve greener and more sustainable development.

Li Fei, Vice Minister of Commerce of China, said that the cooperation between China and Bangladesh in jointly building the "the Belt and Road" has yielded fruitful results and the bilateral economic and trade relations have been deepening. It is expected that the grand vision of Chinese path to modernization and the dream of "Golden Bengal" will connect and achieve each other. We hope that both sides will actively expand their economic and trade cooperation, fully tap into cooperation in manufacturing, digital economy, green environmental protection and other fields, contribute more practical results to China Bangladesh economic and trade cooperation, and help enhance the economic and trade relations between the two countries. Welcome Bangladeshi enterprises to fully utilize platforms such as the CIIE, actively explore the Chinese market, and promote high-quality products from Bangladesh.

The Chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission, Hibri Rubayat Ur Islam, introduced the opportunities for commercial trade and investment between China and Bangladesh. He stated that Bangladesh is a potential star in South Asia, with over a hundred economic zones, eight export processing zones, and 39 high-tech parks. Duty free measures have been implemented for factories established in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is still the second largest producer of jute in the world; The light industry and electronic equipment industry are also developing rapidly, and have now established their own home appliance brands. In addition, the automotive industry continues to rise, and it is expected that the annual demand in the domestic market will exceed 100000 vehicles by 2024.

At present, the projects invested by China in Bangladesh are mainly in the fields of infrastructure and energy. Chinese companies have obtained a total construction contract of nearly 23 billion US dollars in Bangladesh, and there are many large projects underway between the two countries. In order to further invite Chinese investment, Bangladesh has specially built an economic and industrial zone for Chinese enterprises, which is very close to the port and enjoys various convenient conditions in business and other aspects, "said Hibri Rubayat Ur Islam.

Lockman Hussain Mia, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment and Development Authority, stated that Bangladesh is implementing new energy projects and a new tram assembly plant is about to land. Bangladesh is also promoting rapid development of the digital economy, which is believed to bring returns to investors. Meanwhile, Bangladesh is implementing access policies, subsidies, and tax exemptions. China has established a large number of important industrial and commercial facilities in Bangladesh, and we warmly welcome Chinese friends to continue investing and developing in Bangladesh. (Economic Daily reporter Wang Yiyi)