China signs 197 B&R cooperation documents with 137 countries, 30 int'l organizations

Meng Wei, spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC)

BEIJING, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- China has signed 197 Belt and Road (B&R) cooperation documents with 137 countries and 30 international organizations by the end of October, the country's top economic planner said Friday.

Apart from developing and developed economies, a number of companies and financial institutions from developed countries have collaborated with China to expand the third-party market as well, Meng Wei, a spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), told a news conference.

The construction of the China-Laos railway, China-Thailand railway, Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway and Hungary-Serbia railway are making solid headway while projects including the Gwadar Port, Hambantota Port, Piraeus Port and Khalifa Port have gone smoothly, the NDRC said.

Meanwhile, the building of the China-Belarus industrial park, China-UAE Industrial Capacity Cooperation Demonstration Zone and China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone is also forging ahead.

From January to September, China's trade with B&R countries totaled about 950 billion U.S. dollars, and its non-financial direct investment in these countries topped 10 billion dollars, Meng said.

She noted that China has made bilateral currency swap arrangements with 20 B&R countries and established RMB clearing arrangements with seven countries.

In addition, the country has also made achievements with B&R countries in other sectors including technology exchange, education cooperation, culture and tourism, green development and foreign aid.