2020年CRI Trade, investment under spotlight in Merkel's China visit（在线收听）

Trade and investment cooperation between China and the EU is expected to be under the spotlight as German Chancellor Angela Merkel begins her two-day visit to China.

Chancellor Merkel has now visited China 11 times since taking office in 2005.

During her visit, Merkel is expected to meet President Xi Jinping and hold talks with Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing.

She's also scheduled to have engagements with German and Chinese businesses.

China and Germany have maintained close business ties over the years, despite some challenges.

Dr. Ulf Henning Richter, a business strategist based in China, says both sides do recognize how important they are to one another.

"We do know that China is our biggest market now and so we need to be close to the Chinese market and also work together with the Chinese firms to be able to compete here. So I think that is a very clear tendency of what has happened on both sides," says Richter.

Stats indicate that trade volumes between the two countries neared 200 billion U.S. dollars in 2018.

Richter says Germany's major car companies, Huawei and others have signed agreements to develop new technology in the automotive sector.

But Germany has come recently under pressure from the US not to use Huawei's technology for its 5G network and autonomous cars.

However, Richter says the two sides remain undeterred from working together, with Chinese companies gaining more access to the German and European markets.

Dr. Cui Hongjian, the head of the European Studies Department at the China Institute of International Studies, says China and Germany will use this visit to strengthen trade relations between the two countries.

"So undoubtedly I think China and Germany should try to keep their very good relations and cooperation. But of cause on the other side it will also give some sense of this relationship between China and Germany especially in current background," says Cui.

He suggests the economic challenges in Germany necessitate Merkel to engage in serious talks with the world's second largest economy on trade. He adds both sides need to use this opportunity to exchange ideas on how to clear the cloud of uncertainty that's currently looming large over global trade.

"Both countries need to have some more discussion, have some more cooperation to deal with any possible problem from this protectionism and unilateralism. So I think now it's a good time because this year it will be a very important time to deal with some big challenges, for example the China-US trade friction and how to resolve the negotiation between the European Union and the United States," says Cui.

The leaders are likely to also talk about concluding negotiations on the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment.