French President Emmanuel Macron's second state visit to China was quite a successful one as both China and France managed to close commercial deals estimated to be worth $15.1 billion. Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping witnessed the signing of the deals at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday.
The commercial deals, aimed at boosting cooperation between nations, covers a myriad of industries including agriculture, aviation, energy, and finance. China and France also signed agreements to bolster their cooperation in protecting free trade and enhancing the global economy.
France and China also announced an initiative expressing both countries' strong support for the UN Paris Climate Agreement. With the United States no longer part of the agreement, China and France are calling for the rest of the global leaders to work together to uphold multilateralism and to build a more open world economy.
Macron and Xi also witness the signing of a joint statement pertaining to an agreement on geographic indications. This agreement essentially protects products and their registered names from misuse or imitations. This is aimed at bolstering reciprocal trade for high-quality products from both sides.
During his speech prior to the signing of the commercial deals, Xi stated that Both China and France should take more responsibilities as permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Xi mentioned that international order based on international law must be upheld with the WTO's rules as its cornerstone.
Macron expressed the same sentiments during his speech and stated that France was ready to work closely with China to push for WTO reforms. The French president emphasized the importance of building stronger ties with China and to hopefully come up with an amicable China-EU investment agreement down the line.
The China-France Economic Forum at the Great Hall of the People was also a celebration of the 55th anniversary of the Sino-French relations. Both leaders vowed to work together and to elevate economic relations with each other to higher levels in the coming years.
During the closing ceremony of the event, Xi addressed the business leaders from both countries and stated that he hopes that both parties will open their doors to each other and provide a level playing field to further grow their partnerships.
Both nations are already working very closely to align China's Belt and Road Initiative with Europe's Eurasian connectivity strategy. In 2018, trade between France and China had reached around $62.9 billion. According to the Ministry of Commerce, this was a 15.5 percent increase from the bilateral trade amount recorded in 2017. That number is expected to once again increase this year.
