| 11 Mar 2010 |
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GCC, China to talk investment, oil supply
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Hundreds of representatives of public and private sectors from Gulf oil producers and China will converge on Manama this month to discuss mutual investment and Gulf oil supplies to the most populous nation on earth.
The March 23-24 conference comes in the aftermath of the global fiscal turbulence, a surge in trade between the two sides and a steady increase in China's oil imports from the region, the largest crude oil basin in the world.
The conference, which will attract ministers and other officials and businessmen from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
and China, also follows an intensified drive by the world's oil superpower Saudi Arabia to shift emphasis from the US to southeast Asian markets for its hydrocarbon exports.
"This forum comes amid extremely complicated circumstances. It is very important for both sides in terms of trade and investment co-operation," said Isam Fakhru, Chairman of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry and head of the Federation of the Dammam-based GCC Chambers.
"This significant meeting is aimed at benefiting from the massive business opportunities available in the two regions, increasing bilateral trade, exploring investment scopes and discussing a free trade agreement (FTA) between the two sides," he said in a statement sent to Emirates Business.
Fakhru said he expected several agreements to be reached at the conference, noting the two sides "strategically need each other".
"Each party realises this fact. China recognises the vital position of the Gulf as a major oil supplier, given its increasing reliance on this region for its hydrocarbon needs. This is underscored by the fact that China has only about 1.8 per cent of the world's oil reserves and accounts for as high as 22 per cent of the world's total population. It has become the second-largest oil consumer after the US."
His figures showed China imported around 55 per cent of its oil needs from the GCCGCC in 2008 and the share is expected to surge to 65 per cent in 2015.
Between 1999 and 2008, GCC-Chinese trade jumped by at least 40 per cent annually to reach about $70 billion (Dh257bn) in 2008, including nearly $42bn worth of exports by GCCGCC countries and $28bn worth of imports.
Saudi Arabia, the largest oil supplier to China and the world's dominant crude exporter, has remained the largest trading partner of Beijing, with exports of $31bn and imports of $11bn in 2008. According to data by the GCC Chambers, the UAE was the second largest partner, with their bilateral trade leaping by 41 per cent to $19.4bn in 2008. The UAE is also the largest Gulf base for Chinese companies, estimated at nearly 2,000 at the end of 2008. Over 200,000 Chinese also work in the UAE.
"The GCCGCC has become the eighth largest trading partner of China. It is also the eighth largest market for Chinese products and the ninth largest exporter to that country. Relations between the two sides have been rapidly increasing over the past years and this should prompt both sides to work for further expanding this relationship and crown it with signing a FTA," Fakhru said.
From a negligible position during 1980s, China has become a major economic and trading partner of the GCCGCC. The GCC Chambers expects bilateral trade to continue its growth to reach $350-500bn in 2020.
By Nadim Kawach
© Emirates Business 24/7 2010
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