China-Malaysia industrial park 'highlight of cooperation'

China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park is set to become the new highlight of cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, promoting China's Go West Campaign and contributing more to the Sino-ASEAN strategic partnership, the Ministry of Commerce said on Wednesday.

Located in Qinzhou, a port city in western China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, the industrial park was inaugurated in April. The 55-square- kilometer project is China's third inter-governmental industrial park with another country.

A promotion conference was held in Beijing, attended by officials from the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous regional government and the Malaysian embassy in China.

"China-Malaysia Industrial Park is one of the most important cooperation projects between China and Malaysia, and the ministry will strive to develop it into a model of bilateral trading cooperation," Wang Chao, vice-minister of commerce, said on Wednesday.

Qinzhou Party Secretary Zhang Xiaoqin introduced the park's development plan during the conference. Zhang said the bilateral cooperation in terms of equipment manufacturing, technology information, food-processing, biotechnology and modern service will lead to prosperity for both Chinese and Malaysian companies.

"We will try to attract investors from both China and Malaysia to invest in these areas in the industrial park," Zhang said. Malaysian companies, including Rimbunan Hijau Group and SP Setia, have already decided to invest in the park, he said.