G20 trade ministers to meet in Shanghai in July

BEIJING - The G20 Trade Ministers Meeting will be held in Shanghai on July 9, 2016 to discuss ways to boost trade and investment cooperation, a commerce official said Wednesday.

The two-day meeting will be held in advance of the G20 Hangzhou Summit, which is slated for Sept 4 and 5. China took over the G20 presidency in December last year.

"Global trade plays a weakened role as an engine for economic growth as its growth loses steam. Therefore, G20 members have a strong will to strengthen trade and investment cooperation," Ministry of Commerce (MOC) spokesperson Shen Danyang said at a press conference.

The G20 Trade and Investment Working Group was established this year based on a proposal from China.

The meetings of trade ministers and the working group will allow G20 members to hold in-depth talks on topics including trade and investment mechanisms, global trade expansion and multilateral trading system development.

Efforts will be made to let the G20 play a bigger role in global economic and trade governance, fighting trade protectionism and driving global trade back to strong growth, Shen said.