Jiangxi signs cooperation agreements with US

A US delegation signed a series of cooperation agreements with agriculture companies in Jiangxi province on Wednesday, a move to boost exports of local farm produce.

Invited by the Ministry of Agriculture, senior experts from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the US Agriculture Products Futures Trading Union visited Jiangxi on Thursday, exchanging opinions and experiences with enterprises from the province.

The delegation consisted of senior experts and market analysts from the US. Officials from Jiangxi Agriculture Department, Food Industry Bureau and delegates from businesses in the province attended the meeting representing the Chinese side.

The discussion covered agricultural trading opportunities between China and the US, a project to build logistic systems along the Mississippi River for food delivery.

"The futures trading market of agricultural commodity is like a tropical jungle, a kind of ecosystem, in which speculators, hedgers, transparency and the delivery system are indispensable parts," said Christopher Manns, a member of the US delegation. "The whole system will collapse without any one of them."

Manns says that businessmen in Jiangxi have learned a lot from the delegation during the trip. He says they've gained knowledge of US agricultural commodity trading rules. On top of that, Manns says the delegation shared their advanced experience and knowledge of international futures trading technologies. He also said that they learned risk management and methods to tackle the problems of futures hedging.

A director with the Jiangxi Provincial Foreign Affairs and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office said that in this time of the global economy, it is must for Jiangxi to export its agricultural products.